Vincent Olinet - After The Waves / The Waifs, 2011
Charlotte Beaudry - Pussy Bow, 2014
This work by Vincent Olinet I find particularly disturbing.
Mops with blond wigs at the business end portray with a certain degree of
horror the duality of housewife / whore in the misogynistic view of women. Are
these wigs, named with showgirl sounding names after their ex-owners, actually
decapitated heads? The surreal juxtaposition encapsulates all the hatred and
fear men have for women.
The collection by Charlotte Beaudry is less confrontational
– individual paintings depict close ups of skirts and dresses, bows and jewellery.
But the cumulative effect is again to me one of objectification and oppression.
At the end of the exhibition there is a video piece where 19 year old women are
asked their opinions on love and politics. There is an uncomfortable tension
between the canvases of pretty attire and the serious and thoughtful opinions
of these optimistic and admirable young women. Are they at the end of the day
just a piece of skirt?
