“Though the Eyes of the Mother” at the Korean Cultural Center of Chicago from February 8 – 15, 2014. Co-Curated this exhibition with Hey-Seong Tak Lee portraying the work of Korean and American artists.
“Eyes of the Mother” – Thoughts by Karen Gutfreund
I was very interested and intrigued by the theme of this exhibition proposed by Hye-Seong Lee Tak as a collaboration between Korean and American women artists and was so pleased to be asked to assemble a body of work of American artists for consideration for this important exhibition. Firstly, I have to thank Sandra Mueller for her invaluable advice and counsel, who contributed much time and effort into the show proposal. We presented a fantastic body of work and Hye-Seong then had the difficult task of choosing the work that best fit the theme and would also fit in the gallery space. A difficult task indeed, we presented over sixty works of great merit. The breadth and depth of work on this subject was remarkable and we truly wished we had a larger space to showcase the entire collection.
Having to choose brings to mind the decision making process of Solomon when two women were fighting over a baby boy – each claiming it belonged to them. I saw this in a movie as a child and the image has never left me, and I think of it often. Solomon, in his wisdom, commanded that the baby be cut in half. Instantly the rightful mother threw her body across the infant; protesting that the child be given to the other woman to save him, proving her love and maternity, thus sparing him and ultimately getting him returned to her. What are we willing to do as mothers, and how does it affect our lives and ultimately our work? So often women, particularly mothers, are portrayed as weak or soft, and I am astonished at the absurdity of it. The passion, love, dedication and strength that mothers prove over and over rival the strength of any warrior; and the art that comes out of this experience is moving, compelling and significant. Motherhood, this is the stuff of life – messy, complicated, emotional, but it is what makes the cycle keep going. Not being able to be a mother myself, I am a bit envious of the intensity and intimacy displayed in these expressions. But being a certified Doula and “Favorite Auntie”, I have had a glimpse into this world. And I celebrate these artists’ visions and share them with you, the viewer to enjoy.
The American artists chosen include:Ruth Weisberg, Ester Hernandez, Rachel Epp Buller, Miriam Schaer, Hellen Redman, Margaret Lazzari, Sondra Schwetman, Sandra Matthews, Susan Byrnes, C.M. Judge, Niku Kashef, Sandra Mueller, Brenda Oelbaum and Kari Sackmann. I corresponded with the artists and asked for their personal comments, rather than a scholarly statement about their work. I asked them to tell me details and impressions as if we were standing next to each other at the opening, in front of their piece, discussing their work. I share their words and my thoughts.
“The Presence of Their Absence: The Portraits” by Miriam Schaer is very personal to me, having been asked many times if I have kids and then, why not. Her hyper realistic dolls with disapproving comments about childlessness really spoke to me, and highlight the fact no matter what their individual circumstances, women are disparaged, for their failure to contribute or live up to an idealized notion of motherhood. Miriam is working on an artist book that will hold these images, concepts and research.
Rachel Epp Bueller with “Littlest Sawtooth” is from a series of work called The Identity Series. I am deeply drawn to her work by the conceptual nature. They are based on a series of linoleum cut portraits and fingerprint prints that she made of her children. She felt her own identity being submerged, and found that the transition to motherhood jump-started her creativity. The Identity Series speak to transformations of identity that occur with the advent of motherhood.
I found “Transit” by Ruth Weisberg be incredibly beautiful and gripping. “Transit” represents the lone protection from a mother to her vulnerable child. What would one not do for their child? To me, this work epitomizes the passion and strength of love that a mother will endure for her child. The rendering is subtle and a masterpiece.
Susan Byrnes, with “Double Portrait of the Girl from Rome”, reflects all sorts of possibilities and potential. What is in the interior, what does it store – what secret things and where is it going? Susan said it is a vessel for history and memory. I would love to actually use these suitcases for travel! She has lived many places as an adult, and her journeying informs the work she makes and inspired her to intentionally incorporate artifacts of travel into her sculpture.
I saw a fabulous show at the Phillips Collection in D.C. a few years back titled “Paint Made Flesh” and I think that “Precipitous” by Kari Roberts-Sackmann would have been perfect in it. The work is so raw and gripping, the flesh is real. She told me when her daughter decided to grace this world with her presence — she did so “precipitously”. Ten minutes after they screeched into the hospital parking lot with her clinging to the roof of the car by her nails, the baby literally bounced twice on the table and heralded her birth with a lusty howl! This piece speaks to the agonizing rite of passage that most who call themselves “mother” are subject to.
I am in love with the “Timeline series” by Sandra Matthews. I would very much like to have been a subject of hers, shot with my sisters and other family members. The passage of time, evident in the work, is compelling. Sandra is very interested in generations and what gets passed on from one generation to the next, or not. She is moved by their unspoken stories as well as by the play of time, seen on their faces and bodies. Collectively, they have experienced illness, violence, disability and loss, and also have grown, met challenges and thrived. She sees them as courageous survivors, and hopes this sense of survival comes through. I know it does!
When I learn of women that have lost a child, I just don’t know how they bear it. The work by Helen Redman, “The Other Side of Birth”, expresses the loss of a child, her child. It is so beautiful but so sad to me. She said over the years, this piece has morphed from a painting to a shroud to a teardrop. The impact of losing a child is with one forever. So, too, is the compassion and love it can engender. She volunteers as a facilitator for a San Diego mom’s bereavement group. I’m certain she helps others through such a difficult process and transforms their grief through her powerful work.
“Origins” by Sandra Mueller has such movement in the work and is so powerful and delightful. It perfectly captures the emotion and intensity of the mother-to-be in waiting. Working with colored inks and oils, fluids that naturally diverge, this figurative image emerged almost as a dream icon might and set the parameters of the creative journey to come — embrace mystery, invite reflection, choose possibility.
This sculptural installation is one of my favorites — “Plumb Boobs” by Sondra Schwetman. I love the commanding presence it has and also love the humor.The materials are chunky Icelandic “bubble gum pink” yarn, knit into sweater forms for boobs; and powdered coated steel stands to serve as gravity reminders. From youth to motherhood to old age we watch the plumb line change with cultural style and norms. Sondra said the inspiration for this piece was the changes women’s bodies go through such as pregnancy and how these changes are viewed through the lens of normative culture — what is acceptable and considered beautiful.
I have a special affinity for Brenda Oelbaum’s “art as activism” work — and especially “Venus of Willendorf, the Willendorf Award”. This work comments on how breast feeding is marketed to new mothers as a quick weight loss scheme. Brenda said we rush to trade our child baring hips for “Thigh Gap,” renouncing fecundity, worshiping recovery, as if maternity was a disease. Brenda does very important work focusing on the body, I hope others will learn and grow from it; I certainly have.
Beautiful and sensitive, Niku Kashef’s work”cradle” and “seed” serve as document for memory and narrative. She perfectly captures the quiet and fleeting moments of new-motherhood and forms it into a place between what is real and what is imagined. Her new daughter is the central figure in her world while also being the central figure in the images, as the world changes around her. It will be wonderful in years to come as her daughter grows, to have been able to capture these moments that are so fleeting, so magically.
What a powerful statement and work – connecting the mother to the earth! Ester Hernandez with”Mis Madres/My Mothers” displays her inspiration to the words of her Native American ancestors and the first photos of Earth from the Apollo space mission. She honors and preserves the strength and knowledge of women that came before her who spoke of the eternal connection with Mother Earth and the universe.
The work by Margret R. Lazzari, “Letting Go”, is so powerful yet dreamy and draws you into a secret, private place. I would love to have this work in my collection. Letting go and letting your child sink or swim both literally and figuratively has got to be one of the most difficult things for a mother who wants to protect them yet knowing if they don’t let go, the child will not learn and be able to stand on their own. Margaret portrays this perfectly with her large scale work.
I become mesmerized by the video/installation “Cherub” by C.M. Judge; my heart rate slows down and I am immersed into a timeless sense of infinity. C.M. said as a mother, she was stunned by the presence of this infant – simultaneously powerful and vulnerable. Seeing this child projected large in the installation echoes her inner reality as a mother while allowing viewers to drink in the details of the infant’s body and movements as seen through a mother’s gaze.
What an incredible thought provoking body of work! I am honored to be involved with this project that I know will touch the hearts and minds of the viewers. “Eyes of the Mother” will inspire creative, didactic dialog on what it means to be an artist and mother with all the joys, sorrows, trials and tribulations that accompany the journey.
