Sunday, 16 December 2012

Censorship of Australian Mother Artists works


Winding back in time, strangely enough I was artist's model as well as artist. Whatever happened to Life Drawing? Now, in Australia, we have the art gallery police who turn up at the whiff of flesh toned paint- especially if the works are of children by their mothers, or nude self-portraits by women. After hundreds of years of representation of naked women and children, cherubs, and all sorts of mythological creatures by male artists, as soon as women resist the role of model and pick up the paintbrush for themselves, it seems, the art police step in.
Two artists whose works I know well, Del Kathryn Barton and Cherry Hood, both mothers, have had their art works reviewed by the police department of Australian Art Criticism.  
I will be discussing the heavy yet secretive policing of Australian mother artist’s work, and responding to their critical reviews, in coming articles on this site.

Ruth Skilbeck  16.12.2012

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