Marie + 90 (Ensemble)
2010-2012
3 Cibachromes face mounted to Plexi on museum box
149.9 x 115.6 cm (59 x 45 1/2 in.) (each)
A corseted bust seen from the front, a tulle tutu and a dancer’s slightly open thighs appear on three mounted, framed Cibachrome prints. These are shots of The Little Dancer of Fourteen, a sculpture Edgar Degas made between 1879 and 1881.
The title given to this group by Louise Mawler refers to Marie van Goethem, identified as Degas' model. Lawler does not just photograph a detail of the sculpture: she slightly offsets it within the composition and, above all, multiplies it to produce three distinct images. Lawler likes to photograph works of art in particular contexts. By showing only a fragment, or by capturing it among other objects in an exhibition, she changes the relationship to the work of art and gives it new meaning. By hiding the dancer's face and displaying her attributes, she raises the issue of the subject’s sexualisation.
Lawler's Marie + 90 group was exhibited for the first time by the Pinault Collection during the 2014 "Art Lovers" show at the Grimaldi Forum Monaco.
The title given to this group by Louise Mawler refers to Marie van Goethem, identified as Degas' model. Lawler does not just photograph a detail of the sculpture: she slightly offsets it within the composition and, above all, multiplies it to produce three distinct images. Lawler likes to photograph works of art in particular contexts. By showing only a fragment, or by capturing it among other objects in an exhibition, she changes the relationship to the work of art and gives it new meaning. By hiding the dancer's face and displaying her attributes, she raises the issue of the subject’s sexualisation.
Lawler's Marie + 90 group was exhibited for the first time by the Pinault Collection during the 2014 "Art Lovers" show at the Grimaldi Forum Monaco.
Exhibitions
Courtesy of the artist and Metro Pictures, New York
© Art Lovers Histoires d'art dans la collection Pinault / Grimaldi Forum Monaco 2014 / © Photo Christophe Gori
Courtesy of the artist and Metro Pictures, New York
Courtesy of the artist and Metro Pictures, New York
Courtesy of the artist and Metro Pictures, New York
Courtesy of the artist and Metro Pictures, New York
Courtesy of the artist and Metro Pictures, New York
Courtesy of the artist and Metro Pictures, New York
