Me, Myself & Us
Curator : Claire Di Felice
Throughout the history of art, self-portraits have been prevalent in every major movement, from the Italian Renaissance to the Post-Modern and Contemporary periods. Initially associated with questions of identity, the self-portrait has now taken on a new meaning and role as a tool for activism.
According to French philosopher Jacques Rancière, politics and aesthetics are deeply connected. All art is political, as it either reinforces or questions societal structures. Activist art brings social and political issues into the creative process, challenging the notion of art’s neutrality. Many photographers use self-portraits to address societal norms. Although these images are often criticized for their beauty, they reveal the photographer’s perspective on the world.
The exhibition, entitled Me, Myself and Us, showcases a group of artists who use the medium of self-portrait as a means of social, political and/or environmental commentary, including Cihan Çakmak, Omar Victor Diop, Krystyna Dul, Lyle Ashton Harris, Zanele Muholi, Cristina Nuñez and Emma Sarpaniemi.
In their self-portraits, Zanele Muholi and Lyle Ashton Harris question stereotypes about labour, racism, and sexual politics. In the same vein, Omar Victor Diop’s series Liberty captures key moments in Black protest history. His series Allegoria explores environmental issues affecting African Continent, serving as an allegory for humanity’s concern for nature.
The series The Burden I am Wearing by Krystyna Dul raises awareness of the global problem of the unsustainable fashion industry and its impact on the environment and the unethical working conditions of garment workers.
Featuring primarily female artists, this exhibition has a strong feminist tone with works by Cihan Çakmak and Emma Sarpaniemi.
Through her self-portraits, Cihan Çakmak resists the male-dominated Kurdish culture of her upbringing, choosing to live free from oppression. Emma Sarpaniemi challenges the idealized female body with humor and self-derision. Like Cindy Sherman, she uses self-portraits to shift focus away from objectification, emphasizing performance and play instead.
What unites these artists is their activism and approach to social issues. This is particularly evident in Cristina Nuñez’s work, which she views as self-therapy, transforming pain and strong emotions into art. She extends this experience to others in The Self-Portrait Experience. In her series Somebody to Love, Nuñez combines self-portraits with images of her ancestors and family, exploring relationships and her ongoing search for her own root & identity through faces and bodies.
The distinctive visual languages and approaches to activism unique to each artist highlight different causes that reflect today’s societal and political issues. In the same spirit as the previous exhibition, a dialogue is created between works by artists from Arendt’s collection and new artists.
Location: Arendt House
Discover the cultural agenda of Arendt & Art during Luxembourg Art Week
