I am an artist. I always have been. It was an unconventional path to get here. I planed to study medicine, but chose art in the end. I adore science and it still influences my work, but I mix it with fantasy from my own mind. Like all artists, my experiences influence my life too. Particularly interactions with my family. My choosing art wasn't the happiest moment for my parents, but they have mostly been very supportive.
But anyways, my MFA thesis, which I completed this past spring, focused on the issue of the Quarter Life Crisis, a growing pop culture Psychology term that focuses on the age group of 18-35; people that are entering "the real world ", and how we are all adjusting to the conventional or expected roles set by society. I focused on the modern day woman, the ideal woman that young people are bombarded with in the media and even by our own families. The woman that is beautiful, successful, works, has a great relationship, is sexy, is a wife, and mother, and can feel fulfilled doing it all. Now many people say to me, "That seems like a very 1970s 80s ideal". And that is just what I am talking about. The ideal that we have today, that we see on TV and in magazines, is out of date and really just makes many young people feel horrible. This woman that is perfect, that can do it all is amazing, but is a fantasy.
Here is the abstract of the written thesis:
Inspiration for the MFA thesis
exhibition, Surviving the Quarter Life
Crisis, came while reading about
the Quarter Life Crisis. These writings described the societal expectation for
which any young woman should strive to become the perfect female and fulfill
all of her expected roles. The exhibition’s installations combined mixed media
and ceramic artifacts with photographs of staged scenes. My experiences,
blended with archetypes of the sexy pinup and perfect wife and mother, constructed
a humorous and disturbing parody of this expected ideal. Combining Rococo style
and techniques, with altered objects, found objects, and ceramic objects created
a façade of perfection which masked the issues of the unattainable woman and
the pressure, scrutiny, and inadequacy felt by young women to fulfill these
roles. The embellished imagery in the exhibition confronted the societal
expectation that a woman must endeavor to become society’s ideal woman. (Wambach iv)
(Yep, just cited myself! Yay Academia!)
Many young women, like myself try to be this ideal, and when we don't succeed in one or more aspects, we feel like less of a success, less of the woman we should be. So in my show, I used mixed media, photography, and ceramics to show the fantasy. I turned myself into the physical representation of the ideal. The sexy pinup, the mother, the wife, I put it all together to create my show. I tried to attack the out of date ideal, by creating it, and putting it in front of the viewer. The show was a mix of installation and photography. People could walk around the scenes and become a voyeur to the life of the ideal woman, a representation of the eye of society, of the expectations put on young people today.
Now I know I am starting to sound preachy, but what I really to convey with my show was the idea that sometimes the ideal, what is expected, is actually ridiculous and unattainable. Young people today should not feel obligated to fit into a mold. Young women today should do what makes them happy. If that is being a stay at home mom, then fine, if it is being a high-powered business woman then great, if it is joining the circus and marrying a clown named Bubbles, then wonderful. It is up to them. Now, I discovered after completing my thesis, that I loved dressing up and looking pretty. I love doing all that 1950's girly stuff. But I also love doing my art, and helping others. I may not become that woman that can do it all ideal, but I will become, and do what makes me happy.
Sorry for the long winded rant. Below are some pictures form my thesis. If you have Facebook you can check out some of my other work. https://www.facebook.com/emmanuelle.wambach/photos?collection_token=4101387%3A2305272732%3A6 The albums should be public under my profile. Oh and if anyone is interested in my thesis, just ask. I'll send you the 72 page document in pdf format. :-)
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