YEAR 11 CASE STUDY- YASUMASA MORIMURA b.1951
"Art is basically entertainment... I am an entertainer and I want to make art that is fun".
- Yasumasa Morimura
Portrait (Futago), 1988. Photograph, chromogenic print with acrylic paint and gel
medium. 210. 19 x 299.72cm. (See Manet's Olympia)
Yasumasa Morimura appropriates universally well known images derived from art history, mass media, and pop culture to create unconventional and bold self-portrait renderings in photography, performance, and video. Through the extensive use of props, costumes, make-up, and digital manipulation, Morimura masterfully transforms himself into recognizable subjects that punctuate the Western cultural cannon.
What is meant by the 'Western cultural cannon'?
His unsettling deconstruction of iconic images and masterpieces challenges the assumptions already placed on such images while commenting on Japan's complex and conflicting absorption of Western culture.
(Extract taken from website)
What is meant by the 'Western cultural cannon'?
His unsettling deconstruction of iconic images and masterpieces challenges the assumptions already placed on such images while commenting on Japan's complex and conflicting absorption of Western culture.
(Extract taken from website)
Marcel Duchamp shocked critics years ago with his "L.H.O.O.Q.", a print of the Mona Lisa on which the insouciant Frenchman had penciled a wispy moustache and goatee. In a similar way, Morimura’s Mona Lisa Series brings the viewer to a re-assessment of the sanctity of Western art and the concepts of artistic creation and originality. (Taken from website) How has Morimura has questioned the sanctity of the Mona Lisa? |
Mona Lisa in its origins, 1998.
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Mona Lisa in its Pregnancy, 1998.
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Mona Lisa in the Third Place, 1998.
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"I don't do my painting on a canvas... I do my painting on my face".
- Yasumasa Morimura
Self Portrait/ After Audrey Hepburn 1 Self Portrait/ After Marilyn Monroe 1
1996. Gelatin silver prints, 44 x 29cm. 1996. Gelatin silver prints, 44 x 34.5cm.
ACTIVITY:
PRACTICE:
1. How has Morimura redefined the boundaries of artmaking practice?
Refer to at least two artworks in your response.
CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK:
2. Contemporary audiences often expect to be stimulated or entertained when engaging with artworks.
Explain how audience expectations has influenced the intentions and actions of Morimura.
FRAMES:
3. Explain why Morimura has used recontextualisation when making art.
Refer to at least two artworks in your response.
4. Investigate how a cultural point of view is represented in at least one artwork created by Morimura.
1. How has Morimura redefined the boundaries of artmaking practice?
Refer to at least two artworks in your response.
CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK:
2. Contemporary audiences often expect to be stimulated or entertained when engaging with artworks.
Explain how audience expectations has influenced the intentions and actions of Morimura.
FRAMES:
3. Explain why Morimura has used recontextualisation when making art.
Refer to at least two artworks in your response.
4. Investigate how a cultural point of view is represented in at least one artwork created by Morimura.
Created by N. Usher for Gilroy Catholic College, 2014.