Aimar Rosario

Fem-Divinity

The idea of womanhood was congested into the minds of young girls by cultivating a myriad of expectations set by impossible social and cultural standards. As time progressed and technological advancements shifted the balance of human life, the manifestation of these expectations began modeling through new forms of communication, especially social media. Femininity is not only a way to cater to a certain demographic, rather it has become a weapon to measure the value of a woman.  Nonetheless, in the 21 century as binary ideologies continue to be exposed the concept of femininity has transformed.  I decided to make the concept of femininity through time the overarching theme in my exhibition to discover the ambiguity and trends related to femininity. I am drawn by this topic based on my aim to uncover the social categories humans create, specifically how it leads to different perspectives and ideologies. Thus, I began to research how different artists challenged the concept of femininity and utilized different artistic styles to articulate their point. I was inspired by artists like AM DeBrincats’ Blooming Sky, David Hockneys’ Still Life Blue Guitar, Sofia Bonatis’ Mauna, and Michelangelos’ The Creation of Adam. 

The selection of my exhibition follows a specific timeline to dissect certain trends or symbols that correspond to the concept of femininity. Based on the idea femininity manifests in a myriad of ways, I chose to utilize different mediums to highlight the way different elements become one. Artists like Am Debrincat inspired me to manipulate each medium in such a manner to display a different visual narrative in order to illustrate the ambivalence of femininity. To maintain a balance in my exhibition, I decided to utilize newspaper and gold acrylic paint as a common medium. From my interpretation, newspapers can embody a classic retro effect in any piece, or simply embody the idea of uniformity. Whereas gold is mostly associated with holiness, power, poise,  wealth, and beauty- common elements used to illustrate feminine attributes. Therefore, I  manipulated the relationship of these two mediums by creating an overlap in pieces like Medusa and 4A35 to combine the idea of influence and beauty. In pieces like Eve, Call me Maybe, Tacenda and Gambit specifically, the gold paint and newspaper were not bound to highlight the idea of choice and create a difference between the timeline of the exhibition. Artworks like  Deus ex machina strays away from manipulating this relationship, rather focus on the quality of the photographs.

I chose to curate my exhibition to cover sub-topics like false appearances, beauty, and the influence of the media to exemplify the transformation of femininity through time. In order to follow a specific timeline, I organized my exhibition around a timeline in chronological order from the 1930s-2020. The exhibition begins with a two-part watercolor series to introduce the paradox of femininity by placing one in a specific context, the 1930s, and the second on the universal aspect of feminine attributes. By choosing to curate the artworks with similar mediums and color pallets, the message of challenging the perceived power dynamic between femininity and one’s true identity is amplified. In the middle of the exhibition, Gambit, Deus ex machina, and Tacenda are organized in a manner to highlight their subtopic: the power of false appearances. Whereas the final selection, Eve, Call me Maybe and Media Bliss follows a similar color palette of black and gold to further embellish the diversity of mediums and color pallets throughout the exhibition.

Considering femininity was created in a categorical manner to fit a specific demographic, I wanted my exhibition to challenge the idea of uniformity. This way the audience would visually interpret the way space and time can influence the perception and representation of femininity in a subtle manner. The entire exhibition was curated in a manner the audience could notice the subtle hints through the mediums, color pallet at a larger scheme by maintaining a critical eye as we must do in real life.