In 2009, the curators at the Centre Pompidou in Paris took the bold decision to fill the venue with works selected from the permanent collection of the Musée National d'Art Moderne, solely created by women artists. elles@centre pompidou which took place from May 2009 until February 2011 was a revelation for visitors like me. More recently in 2021, Women in Abstraction showcased the ongoing interest in gender themed exhibitions extending lately to smaller museums like the Musée du Luxembourg with Pioneers: Artists in the Paris of the Roaring Twenties, a show about the influence of women artists between the two World Wars. This Fall, the Hirshhorn in Washington D.C. is catching up with an exhibition of works selected from its permanent collection. Put It This Way: (Re)Visions of the Hirshhorn Collection "unites almost a century of work by 49 women and nonbinary artists". Located on the third floor, it assembles paintings, sculptures, collages, photographs, videos and installations spread in the galleries of the circular building.
Organized by themes, the exhibition starts with "Eye, Body", a salient subject exploring voyeurism, violence, objectification of women, isms related to race and gender, through diverse works including Display Stand with Madonnas, 1987-1989, a towering accumulation of Virgin Marys from Katharina Fritsch. Further, Billie Zangewa in A Vivid Imagination, 2021, represents a lonely matriarchal figure set in her backyard garden invaded by an ill-defined threatening white shape, fostering a feeling of doom. A major work from Carolee Schneemann Eye Body: 36 Transformative Actions, 1963-1973, feature photographs of the naked artist surrounded by attributes like snake, ropes, tarp, feathers, broken mirrors, and more. During her performances, the artist offers her body to the visitor's gaze in tableaux recorded by Erró. Pain and trauma inspire the next works, from a video featuring Ana Mendieta in the nude, pouring blood on herself then rolling in white feathers to Cecily Brown's painting "à la Soutine", Hoodlum, 2000-2001, inspired by her surroundings in New York City's Meatpacking district. Throwing soil from a plantation on a white wall to represent a map of the United States sums up the performance from Kiyan Williams filled with historical references. Senga Nengudi's R.S.V.P X, 1976/2014, like a drawing in space, enlivens a corner of the gallery where the elegant sculpture seems ready to dance. Adding to its aesthetic element, the piece made of panty hoses filled with sand and rose petals alludes to the resilience of women's body during pregnancy. Did Nengudi hint also at their psychological resilience? Conceptual art allows us to speculate. Following the somewhat tense works, "Nature and Abstraction" offers a break with a stunning triptych from Joan Mitchell. Size, vibrancy of colors, vigor of the brush, makes it an ode to nature and life. This also describes two paintings from Alma Thomas nearby. The cocoon-like sculptures made of alabaster, wood, silk, metal, from Lee Bontecou and Barbara Hepworth have a motherly side while Jay DeFeo's drawing and Carlotta Corpron's photographs capture the play between light and darkness to produce abstract landscapes. Ultimately, the contemplation of nature becomes a spiritual journey conveyed through Arcanum #2, Helen Lundeberg's painting. Oo Fifi, Five Days in Claude Monet's Garden, Parts 1 and 2, 1992, videos from Diana Thater, provides a cheerful transition with its exuberant colors contrasting with the muted hues of the works in the next gallery labelled Poetry of Perception, starting with a meditative painting from Agnes Martin. The realm of poetry, a way to express the intensity of emotions, encompasses also works of art like sculptures, paintings, which can trigger intense feelings. However the minimalist pieces on display generate little of these: Untitled (LeWitt)) #1, 2016, from Liz Dechenes inspired by Sol LeWitt, Night Naiad, 1977, a totemic piece from Anne Truitt or Untitled (Orange Oval), 2019, from Eva LeWitt stir little emotions. Jennie C. Jones in Light Grey with Middle C (variation #2), 2013, adds a musical element to the visual experience, referring to the most abstract of the arts. Following this first part of the exhibition, a large space provides a place to relax on comfortable sofas while reading the very relevant posters from Guerilla Girls splashed on the walls.
"Stress Position" could be the title for Sondra Perry's installation (Graft and Ash for a Three Monitor Workstation, 2016) introduced by an invitation to pedal an exercise bicycle while watching videos of the artist's avatar. The following works are more or less related to the theme, a painful subject to reflect upon: "How does stress condition our physical spaces, bodies, and possibilities for freedom?... evident here are the ways in which marginalized bodies must continually persist in the face of resistance, pressure and even violence." The conceptual work from Eva Hesse Vertiginous Detour, 1966, sums up the long wall text while two homey photographs from Deana Lawson leave us speculate about a darker side to their story. "Earth Knowledge" includes two artists represented by installations, Dana Awartani from Saudi Arabia and Michelle Stuart associated with the Land art movement. "Shape Shifters" organized around Louise Nevelson's Dream House XXXII, 1972, features also three smaller works from Betye Saar and a portrait from the pioneer Nikki de Saint Phalle. The exhibition concludes with an installation from the New Orleans born artist Zarouhie Abdalian: threnody for the unwilling martyrs, 2021, a final unsettling lament.
The diversity and abundance of works displayed is a testimony of the prolific creativity of women artists and the show provides a glimpse into the growing permanent collection: "Over the past five years 35% of Hirshhorn purchases artworks... made by women and non conforming artists. Last year alone, this number was nearly 60%." This commitment by the Hirshhorn Museum gives us the occasion to discover younger artists and savor revisiting famous ones. Long wall texts have become an unavoidable component of exhibitions, skewing the traditional relationship between artist, work of art and viewer. Under the museum's auspices, the printed statements become the official interpretation of the works of art with adds-on for "kids", possibly addressed to young teenagers (but set at a height for a six year old), robbing them of their emotions, imagination and creativity.
The clearly stated goal of the exhibition is not only to look at works from women artists but also consider the role of the museum in promoting them and emphasize "the significance of gender in creating and perceiving an artwork, the effects of categorizing artists by gender". This brings up ongoing concerns about the "ghettoing" of women artists. While museums have sponsored art by women, the art market is still trying to catch up. Regarding the viewers' bias, it may vary according to their personal experience. About the artist? Of course their gender influences and enriches their work.
The year-long exhibition leaves plenty of time to visit and revisit. The only regret, the collection could be rotated over the coming months to display more works of art from women and nonbinary artists.
photographs by the author:
Rosalyn Drexler "Put It This Way", 1963
Senga Nengudi "R.S.V.P. X", 1976/2014
Guerilla Girls "Women in America Earn Only 2/3 of What Men Do (from Portfolio Compleat:1985-2012)", 1986/exhibition copy 2022
