What objects are associated with femininity? Male-dominated art historical eras point to more traditional motifs such as flowers for fertility and dainty, domestic accoutrements like lace and porcelain. A more contemporary perspective might include everyday items from the drugstore, such as disposable shaving razors, claw clips, and lipstick.
From centuries past to present day, do these objects ultimately embody similar messages about femininity that withstand the test of time? This overarching question is a catalyst for San Francisco-based artist Annie Duncan.
Within her work, sculptural assemblages of mascara tubes, necklaces, perfume bottles, and droopy flowers resemble the familiar surface of a cluttered vanity or overcrowded bathroom countertop. Although Duncan carefully places each sculpture in these compositions, their disorder achieves an air of authenticity. From uncapped cherry Chapstick tubes standing as if they were set down in a rush to discarded rings one decided not to wear after all, there is realism and relatability in each considered detail.
Encountering common goods at an oversized scale prompts the viewer to confront the social impact each item holds. For instance, in “Material Girl,” an enlarged IUD implant is scattered among a variety of ubiquitous products, calling to the desensitization of challenges faced by those with female bodies. “Suddenly, the presence of these objects and everything they evoke—the burden, the beauty, the cultural magnitude that they possess—is too big to overlook,” the artist says.
Duncan begins each piece by sculpting clay with a playful disposition. “It really is just grown-up play-dough or Sculpey,” she remarks. Also a painter, the artist hones in on brushwork during the glazing stage. Treating the bisque-fired surface as a canvas, her ceramic forms come to life with a lustrous sheen.
Lately, the artist has been exploring the power of duality and how the idea of expectations versus reality can be communicated through her sculptures.
“It’s become a really generative theme in my work; this sense that we’re carrying around our hopes and ambitions, and there’s always an adjustment that happens with the real thing. It doesn’t necessarily mean disappointment, but a sort of a flipping or altering of the plan,” Duncan explains. “To me, this feeling is deeply embedded in the feminine experience. Dialing down your initial vision, and learning to be ok with it; saying one thing while meaning another.”
Duncan is currently working on a forthcoming group show that will take place in Seoul. Find her on Instagram for updates and check out her website for more artwork.
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