Limited Visibility, the Latin American exhibit at CAM Raleigh, was overall a very eye-opening exhibit that brings together many different perspectives of a variety of situations. The concept of the pieces was to highlight what was unseen or missing from the art. It gave a unique twist to the understanding of the pieces. Usually when looking at art, the viewer is analyzing what the artist had created for you to see. In this case it was about what the artist has left out or hidden for you to notice. I really enjoyed this because of the way it forces the viewer to interact with the piece and get a deeper understanding of the art.
Some of the pieces that stood out to me were, Shape Shifter, which brought together sandpaper from construction sites across the world, and Temple of One Thousand Bells, which was a beautiful display of glass bells with the centers missing. The first of these two pieces caught my attention because I had never before thought about all of the materials that disappear after construction is finished, but still hold a part of that building. The second was more simply just a very beautiful piece that was uniquely displayed and pleasing to the eye.
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| 97 House Maids by Daniela Ortiz displayed in the CAM Raleigh Art Museum. This photo shows the display of the piece with the photos lined up one by one on the blank wall. |
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| These are two of the photos from the long line of pictures in the same piece as above. In the photo on the left, two house maids can be seen working in white clothing in the background. In the photo on the right, the arm of a house maid wrapped around the child can only just be made out as it is mostly cropped away. |
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| This is my sketch of the art piece, 97 House Maids. I tried to show the display of the photos rather than the content of the pictures. |
This piece addresses the overall theme of the exhibit by showing what would not normally be noticed within these photographs, the house maids. What struck me most however, was the constant appearance of these maids in the lives of the Peruvian children, with no recognition of their role by the families. The display of these images show the contrast between what the families what to portray to society, and reality. In reality the house maids are playing a large role in raising and caring for the children while the parents are most likely working. However, the Peruvian parents do not want to portray the image that their children are being raised by someone else. So instead, they simply post pictures of their happy, healthy children, without acknowledging the house maids presence.
These pictures are a window into the lifestyle of these upper class families. At first I was outraged that the house maids were constantly pushed to the background. However the more I thought about it, the less oppressive and unfair it began to seem. The upper class parents are not able to care for their children because they are out working to be able to sustain their lifestyle. By employing house maids, they are able to work and know that their children are safe. Also, it opens up a lot of employment opportunity in the region for the lower class. Furthermore, these people, while definitely playing a significant role in the families lives, are still employees. It is the kid's activities and accomplishments that the parents are proud of and want to share, not the housemaid's. It seems quite reasonable for them not to be featured.
After, coming to terms with the reasoning behind the house maids not being present in the Facebook photos, I was able to think more about what this exhibit was implying. It is not so much to show the oppression of the house maids as I first thought, but more so to highlight the culture and intertwining of cultures within the community of Peru. It brings forward the fact that the upper class families must sacrifice the constant involvement in the upbringing of their children to fulfil their working responsibilities. On the other hand it shows how the lower class house maids must live in the shadows of the families' successes with little recognition for their line of work. The aspect of limited visibility in the piece transformed from the lack of representation of the house maids, to the sacrifices, the pieces of their lives that each person, both upper and lower class, have given up.
An additional component of this piece that is very unique is that is does not require an art exhibit to be viewed. When searching about the piece, I came across Ortiz's web page. Part of the description of the piece was, "97 house maids is a project that can be accessed without needing to see the web page where just 97 images were selected, the project can be seen also in any Peruvian high class family photo album and in the section of social events of diverse magazines," (Ortiz). This made me more confident in the piece as before, I wasn't sure if Ortiz had searched for all of these pictures with difficulty, or if it was actually representative of the family photo albums. It is fascinating that the piece is constantly living on the web and in magazines, and Ortiz simply gave it structure.
Limited Visibility is an interactive exhibit without the viewer even realizing it. I couldn't help to find myself engaged and pondering about the "missing piece" of each art display. This is modern art that has effectively destroyed the past idea of looking at a piece, seeing what is there, and moving on.
[House maids not to be mistake with handmaids from The Handmaid's Tale :P]
When I saw this piece, the first thing that came to mind was "Why?"- I can't imagine sifting through countless photographs on social media to find the ones that fit my intention. The artist is clearly committed to her message and that commitment adds a greater level of appreciation for me.
ReplyDeleteFirst of all, I love how you analyzed this piece! When this exhibit was first described to me I was unsure of the value it held. I felt as though I was looking through pictures that I could find on any social media site, if I took the time to search. After looking through the pictures, however, it became a puzzle to try and locate where the house maid was located in the picture. After leaving this exhibit and walking through the museum I returned to it, still trying to grasp some sort of message. I did not reach a definite consensus but did reflect on ideas dealing with class and race. By reading this post I finally reached a solid understanding of the piece of art. Not only does it serve as a reminder of past events, but modern issues as well. The message of the piece hit home after reading the part where you explain this piece is "constantly living on the web," but "Ortiz simply gave it structure." What a wonderful way of summing up not only this piece, but all of the other exhibits we viewed at CAM! At first I had the same feelings as you, about being upset about the house maids being in the background instead of part of the picture. You changed my thinking, however, after mentioning that the childrens' parents were just excited to share successes and small moments. The pictures were to serve more as a celebration than a look into class structure. In some ways I was reminded of The Help and the role the maids played in the families. You have me thinking, thanks for an insightful blog post!
ReplyDeleteHey Abby! Walking through CAM together I was super confused at this piece, when you explained to me the idea of the housemaids in each of the photos it suddenly became so clear. However I first thought as you did that it was about the oppression of the housemaid but I really enjoyed your blog post and the points you made of the intertwining of culture. You made the comment that housemaids take care of the children to compensate for their parents working lives, what role do you see the wife or mother in, do they have a job as well? For me I believe that housemaids are used because it is the upper class societal norm. The mothers are available to their children in a different way but the housemaids are there for the dirty labor. What is your take on the housemaid's perspective? Do they want a larger part of the child's life?
ReplyDeleteI really like this piece as well as your analyzation of it. I think it's cool the way you highlighted the role of the handmaids and hows it's just part of the culture, not really an oppressive intention. I think these photos always remind me of The Help in which these children are taken care of by people other than their parents and yet the maids get zero recognition. Going along with that, these women who care for other children all day don't really get to spend time with their children. I think that although this is a reality and a lifestyle for these people, it's also kind of an oppressive way of living, that society, as opposed to the families who take these photos, puts on these maids.
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