It's that glorious time of the semester that you anticipate from the first day of class. As you flip through the syllabus you can't help but get excited for those dates that all fall nicely in a line: midterms and paper deadlines. For me, that means a basic Art History 100 paper that requires a trip to the Palmer Museum of Art. It gave me an excuse to view the new women-centered exhibit currently showing there called "Through the Looking Glass." The display presents a diverse spectrum of women in their unique personal forms, spotlighting how they feel they fit into the world and how it affects them. The exhibit does an excellent job of calling attention to images of women and ideas behind them that are not often portrayed in mainstream media.
According to the Palmer's seasonal newsletter, the display grew, in part, out of the Women's Self-Representation Project, an interdisciplinary research forum focusing on "the subject of gender and historical constructions of selfhood." Unfortunately, some of the students emerging from the small side room that houses the exhibit seemed disgusted more than moved or enlightened. Many of these students only got through the first few pieces before walking out commenting on how "gross" and "disgusting" the display is. To see a warning in an art museum is bothersome enough; to see people offended after choosing to disregard the warning is even worse.
The warning the viewers pass before entering the exhibit cautions onlookers that "some viewers may find this exhibit challenging." Challenging? Isn't that the point? Especially in a museum funded by a large university, one of the most important parts of education is challenging yourself and your beliefs. There are some things that need to be challenging to the viewer. Certain displays may not be pleasing to look at, but they make a statement beyond the canvas. It's important to look at things that provoke feelings about sometimes hard-to-think-about topics. No one enjoys the images they see at the holocaust museum in Washington, D.C., but the images remind you of a truth that existed and cannot be forgotten or ignored.
Most of the artists involved in "Through the Looking Glass" concentrated on challenges and opportunities women artists face when creating self-portraits. Works ranged from a sadomasochism themed photograph with the artist's face covered by a leather mask, to a woman's skin produced as clothing on a hanger, to a painting of an older naked woman taking her own picture in a mirror.
All of these images create a rare contrast to the representation of women you see every day on television, in magazines, in movies, on weight-loss pill pop-up ads and the like. Though often graphic, it is necessary to be exposed to something different than the mainstream.
Women in society are stereotyped and represented by a small percentage of the actual population. "Through the Looking Glass" offers an alternative and perhaps more realistic outlook on how some women view themselves. Any argument contending that the exhibit is "gross" and "unnecessary" is at risk of limiting women artists' expression. In turn, this limits our scope of understanding of the female idea of selfhood -- something that has been limited and misunderstood enough already.
Even the tiny glimpse into these artists' challenges that "Through the Looking Glass" offers is a strong and necessary step toward a more thorough representation of women in U.S. culture. They're not instantly assigned a post in the kitchen anymore, and should likewise not be designated certain personal limitations of who they are.
Women in American culture still face a lot of challenges that need to be addressed or else are at risk of being neglected. "Through the Looking Glass" focuses on different views of women and selfhood -- views that are worth witnessing and reflecting on. The images that make up the exhibit are there to make you think, and it is this sort of warning-worthy art that will help reshape our culture's opinions.
