James Mielnicki Senior Portfolio 2010: Artist 3/21: Annette Messenger

I’ve been told multiple times over the course of my tenure in school that I needed to explore the work of Annette Messenger and can only say that I am frustrated with myself that I only just now chose to do so. There were instant connections I drew between her work and mine from physically exploring material to exploring the development of one’s self. While her work has a great deal to do with feminism, I can relate to her pursuit of self-actualization through the exploration of her craft. In an interview with French poet Bernard Marcade she said “You could of course, accuse me of being a castrating woman, and people certainly have done so, but I also know that it’s about a kind of dime store sadism or fetishism. In the end, it is about false introspection. I like making the viewer a little ashamed, to put him/her in the position of a voyeur caught by surprise. I want the viewer to have the impression of discovering terrible secrets when what is involved is a ridiculous image, even if this image always touches us in the end. (Marcade)” I feel that, in many ways, this statement relates to my work as I’m using family photos, something that’s meant to display an “ideal” of family life or values, and shroud any tension or turmoil beneath a cheesy smile. Messenger, in turn, shows you that tension and, while it may not be directly related to family, it does discuss bringing our more private intimacies to light.

Marcade, Bernard. "Annette Messenger." Bomb Magazine Winter 1989: n. pag. Web. 21 Mar 2011. <http://bombsite.com/issues/26/articles/1147>.

Bio

“Annette Messager was born in 1943 in France. She attended the Ecole des Arts Decoratifs, but was eventually asked to leave as she spent more time at museums and movie theaters than at school. In her installations, Messager makes use of photography, drawing, knitting, embroidery, sewing and objects she has collected.

Her work often involves fragments, such as My Vows, which includes an large number of small close-up pictures of parts of the body. This tendency to fragment and catalog is everywhere in her work. She catalogues ink blots, pictures of children with their eyes scratched out and her own children's drawings. She embroiders misogynist French proverbs and creates drawings based on popular media depictions of happiness. These are sometimes included in albums or encased in glass and framed.

The individual elements of these catalogs are snapshots of the broader themes Messager deals with - issues of sexual and physical abuse, fragmentation of the body, sin, obsession with appearances, fairy tales, children, symbols, effigies, disguise, distortion, repetition. The work is often executed using traditionally feminine materials and techniques.”

"Annette Messenger." Oneroom.org. N.p., n.d. Web. 21 Mar 2011. <http://www.oneroom.org/sculptors/messager.html>.

Quotes

"In my family, my father was the artist," Messager recalled in a conversation at her home on the outskirts of Paris. "With Christian, I was the girlfriend. And since I was cute, well, it was thought impossible to be an artist and cute. At first, I felt proud when someone said, 'Your work looks like a man did it.' Then I realized that was stupid."

Riding, Alan. "Annette Messager: A bold messenger for feminist art | The New York Times."NYTimes.com. The New York Times Co, 26 Jun 2007. Web. 21 Mar 2011. <http://www.nytimes.com/2007/06/25/arts/25iht-messager.1.6316141.html>.

"I wanted to look for an identity through others," she said over tea. "I asked myself, 'Who am I?' I am nothing. So I asked what people said about women. I appropriated the identity of others."

Images