Constructing Identity

I believe constructing an identity is solely about what an individual allows themselves to be influenced by. Identity is built upon many experiences, which can range from societal norms, family structure, relationships, self-realization and classical conditioning.

Nick Cave. Soundsuit,2015.

Nick Cave was an artist who was best known for the soundsuits he produced. This work was very bright, eye-catching, and oddly almost welcoming , which holds resemblance from African ceremonial costumes and masks. The body is camouflaged with the costume, so that ones identity,class, race or gender is not known , then causing the viewer to not become judgmental of the person. This is an important piece because many of us judge others by one's appearance, race, gender etc. This forces you to abandon those ways and understand it without judgement.

Cindy Sherman

Untitled #402, 2000

Cindy Sherman's work has changed throughout photography, film stills, celebrity shots, paintings and shoots. This portrait is standard of people posing for the camera. Cindy's art is non-judgemental as it simply shows the vulnerability of one's self. Similar to the artwork above, the artist wants the viewer to see the work from an unbiased outlook.

Tom Nussbaum
Family Totem , 2003-04

Tom Nussbaun is known for his drawings, cuts, prints, children's book, and functional design objects.
This piece possesses a sense of hierarchy in the family. It shows how each member of the family supports one another, from the "strongest" to the "smallest". It seems that the artist is displaying how everyone in the family plays a crucial role to its structure and support. This is traditionally how a family operates. The strongest, or the "alpha" plays a pivotal role in keeping everything in order. One without the other can possibly cause issue.

Dulce Pinzon

Bernabe Mendez (Spiderman)2007


After moving to New York City from Mexico, Dulce Pinzon studied photography at the international center for photography. It shows how immigrants attempt to remain invisible while still surviving in America. Bernabe Mendez is a professional window cleaner that sends money back to his family in Mexico every month. It shows how immigrants are seen as superheroes, both visible and extraordinary. This shows that, as an individual remains incognito, they can still make a difference in the world, whether they are noticed or not.

Alec Soth
Lenny, Minneapolis, 2002

Alec Soth takes inspiration from Diane Arbus, who would photograph people like circus performers, nudist, the trans community etc. He would photograph 'loners and dreamers', that were "off beat, haunting images of modern day America." He captured their personalities while exposing the similarities that united them. I feel this work captures America in a nutshell. Most of the population consist of people who feel alone, isolated and dream big, but may never have the opportunity to make that happen.

Constructing an Identity

Taysir Keys
Imagery, Identity, and Culture
February 22, 2019
Professor Cherow-O'Leary

Constructing an Identity

        Identity is constructed through one's experiences, abilities, knowledge, relationships, occupation, and personality. For those reasons, it cannot ever even be truly 'completed'-- Judith A. Howard makes a point to quote Bhabha early on in her essay entitled Social Psychology of Identities, saying, "[I]dentity is never a priori, nor a finished product; it is only ever the problematic process of access to an image of totality." The process of identity construction is essentially lifelong, and those components I listed earlier continue to shift and change your identity forever, subconsciously or otherwise. There's also the fact that others have their own views of (typically based on stereotypes, assuming these people are stranger), which can and typically does affect the identity as well. We visited the Montclair Art Museum to see their exhibit entitled Constructing Identity in America, and I took photos of a number of pieces to discuss.
        The first work I'll talk about is Barbara Kruger's 2004 piece, Untitled (Seeing through you). It portrays a woman staring sternly into an unseen camera, with a green filter covering the entire image. There are white circles scattered about, seemingly at random. The words "Seeing through you" are in large print, scaling the whole photo. The question regarding the artwork is whether the woman is being seen through, or if she's the one seeing through someone else. We all have our identities and the one that we allow the public to see, the one we show those closest to us, and the one when we're alone are usually all different in some way if not many ways. Being completely and utterly honest about yourself is generally looked down upon, and I think it's fair to say none of us want to really be seen through, and that would completely do away with the shell we all work hard to keep up. Although it can be nice to be yourself with a select few, it leaves you vulnerable.

Barbara Kruger - Untitled (Seeing through you), 2004-05

        The second work is a homage to Norman Rockwell's Triple-Self-Portrait, painted by Fahamu Pecou in 2010, entitled Rock.Well: Radiant, Pop, Champ. The painting depicts Pecou himself painting a self-portrait while looking into a mirror for reference. He artist shapes his own identity with the help of his three heroes, Jean-Michel Basquiat, Andy Warhol, and Muhammad Ali, who all have their photos taped to the top-right of the canvas. In Pecou's own words, "this holy trinity of influences on my own practice continue to help inform and shape my view of art, innovation, and courage." Artists especially can find their identities influenced a lot by the things they see and experience, whether it be their own lives or the work of others that inspires them. The self-portrait shows that he's been able to construct his own identity via his experiences, abilities, and relationships, falling in line with what I'd initially suggested would make up an identity.

Fahamu Pecou - Rock.Well: Radiant, Pop, Champ, 2010

        The third piece is Nick Cave's Sound Suit, created in 2015. I believe it's a representation of the "shell" we put up to protect ourselves from otherwise total vulnerability. We block people from seeing us with whatever we can-- in this case, a lot of noisy objects and toys. It gives off the idea that this person is exuberant, full of life, playful, and generally just has a fun-loving personality. The fact remains, though, that we can't truly be sure what's going on underneath it all. This is, to a degree, what I think everyone does. We may not all be trying to convince everyone that we're easygoing and just loving life, but we're not being completely honest, and that's fair. I don't think we should be, because frankly, shots toward your true character can hurt and permanently damage you. 

Nick Cave - Sound Suit, 2015

        The fourth piece is Shannon Linder's Grievance Quilt, a three-year project she'd finished in 2018. The quilt is a representation of all of her grievances, ranging from bad coffee to people who chew with their mouths open and global warming deniers. It's something I hadn't really thought about; our identity includes the things we enjoy and what we despise. I actually think this is my favorite work from the entire exhibit because of how much I relate to it. It's also, in the artist's own words, "lumpy and imperfect, but absolutely endearing" which only makes me appreciate it even more. Being able to see all of the artist's dislikes in one quilt probably tells me more about her than most of these works do, offering more of her identity than most are willing to, as it's so honest.
     

        

Shannon Linder - Grievance Quilt, 2018

        The fifth and final piece I chose is Wardell Milan's One could still dream to devise an optimistic antidote against the defeatist and cynical claims of the Return to Order, finished in 2008 (the title reminds me of a Sufjan Stevens song). Artistically, the work is interesting as well because they are actually tabletop dioramas that are hand-assembled in an art studio. He uses cardboard and cuts out figures from family photos, magazines, and other things to create a world that otherwise seems easier to create in a computer program. I think this is another of the more honest pieces, as it visualizes the dysfunction and disaster of this home I assume represents his own. The piece offers us Milan's identity through a personal space of his, presumably a space he had grown up in-- a space that guides the identities of many, at least throughout their youth. 

Wardell Milan - One could still dream.. the Return to Order, 2018

Constructing Identity

What I believe about constructing identity is that it is subconsciously created but consciously realized. The construction of identity is an established summary of childhood and you’re past life, as well as basis on what you live by as an adult. This relates to readings because it relates to the cultural identity of different people. The Grievance Quilt (2018) by Shannon Lindor relates to cultural identity in a first world country. I chose this piece because as you study the quilt, the culture read from it is of modern day society. Some grievances are very low-key such as “exploding yogurts”, “meninists”, “pulp”, and “people who don’t RSVP”.  The artist says her self that creating the quilt was therapeutic and allowed her to literally air out her grievances at the end of the day by putting it on a blanket.  The artist also mentions that she prefers instant gratification, probably accomplishing something using technology or services. In order to teach herself patience she reverted to classical ways of quilting with modern day pom-pom ornaments. The quilt is purely a metaphor for the modern and mild annoyances and evidently, shows that the identify is relative to todays modern society and young people.

 

 Barnabe Mendez (Spiderman) 2007, by Dulce Pinzon is a piece that spoke to me directly. It reminds me of my own culture and identity. This photograph shows window cleaner dressed in a Spiderman costume harnessed to the side of the building. Both the photographer and the subject had to go to brave lengths to get this shot. This shoes the daily efforts that immigrants go through in this country to make a decent income. These jobs often go unnoticed and are very dangerous to achieve. Personally, I appreciate the representational effort to take these professionals look like super heroes because my father is a retired window cleaner in New York City. It is a dangerous job that requires balance practice, and skill to achieve in a smooth manner and there is always a very real possibility that you could end your day at the hospital, which often happened. In Social Psychology of Identities by Judith Howard, she states, “Recent years have seen increasing attention to struggles over national and ethnic identities, mirroring the real world identity-based ethnic conflicts that have had resurgence in the 1990s.” Unfortunately, this is still as real as ever decades later. The cultural identity of people like the window cleaner and the photographer differs greatly from other young Americans For a large percentage of this country; much of the culture is heavily traced to Mexico and other Hispanic countries. It is important to depict these people who live daily to support their families in a long-distance manner as something positive as opposed to being targeted as a general group as dangerous or parasitic but as hard working and even with super-human qualities.

 Untitled (Seeing Through You) 2004-5 by Barbara Kruger touches more on identity than it does culture. To me, the text “Seeing through you” is confrontational, it speaks directly to the viewer and makes me think to myself, if someone can see through my perceived identity. It is mesmerizing to see, the composition is taken entirely by a face looking through. This composition of a woman looking with texturized format and thoughtful expression can be interpreted in several different ways. It provokes the viewer to reflect on how they want to be seen or on what to see.

 Vanity Eye (Bathroom Surveillance) 1966-72 by Martha Rosler is another thought provoking photomontage that I saw. She stresses that she wants people to feel the irony of being watched in a private area. Somewhere your identity is the most vulnerable is being juxtaposed next to a watchful eye that can be interpreted as society and the conformed culture that it imposes on you even in your most “sacred place”. This piece challenges the way you look at identity. To me, it represents the pressure to be seen as a preferred and idealized version of who they are to fit the societal male gaze. Women are targeted constantly to be consumers of domestic products, which is why it is important to call attention to these subtle actions.
                                               

Something that I thoroughly enjoyed viewing at the Montclair Museum was the diversity in cultures and identities that they showcased. Not only did we view pieces representing the way identity relates with culture, but also we got to explore subjects with individuals who are seen as nonconformists. Lenny, Minneapolis, 2002 by Alec Soth is an enveloping photograph. It shows a construction worker named Lenny from Minneapolis who works as an erotic masseur by night. He is a part of a series that sought out “loners and dreamers” around modern America. It is so warm to represent nonconformists and abstract thinkers who live by their own accords to be showcased in such an endearing way