Brought together by creative initiative Tri-pod, “Inside Out” is an exhibition of works from three emerging photographers exploring themes of femininity and is yet another thought-provoking offering from Electric Lane’s Photofusion. No matter whether you’re a woman or a man, consider yourself a feminist or not, this exhibition is sure to get you thinking about womanhood, the human body and beauty.
The photographs, videos and photo-based installations from Jocelyn Allen and Anne Vinogradoff displayed inside the gallery are complimented by a third body of work from photographer Myka Baum which is on display along the walls of Electric Lane and whilst the indoor collections take women as their primary subject, Baum’s body of work is inspired by the cycles of nature and is from her ongoing series, Miss Havisham’s Pantry.
Anne Vinogradoff’s installations explores the trajectory of womankind throughout history, but also bring a lot from her personal, contemporary experience of her own and other women’s bodies. Vinogradoff asks the viewer to consider ancient and current ideologies which dictate and limit female identity through analogue photographs shaped into 3-D objects, from five relief crucifixes mounted on the wall to a carpet – which despite everyone’s polite dodging – you can walk over. Her photographs make bold statements about what is expected of the female body and how this translates into female identities.
It’s hard to know where to start with many of her pieces, but Vinogradoff’s fearless disregard for established truths is gripping
The pieces hold up female objectification and simultaneously reconfigure it. At one point you will find yourself transfixed by five black 6-foot crosses, mounted on the wall with a naked and pert female torso (no head!) ‘staring’ back at you. The body is inked with the following message: God is a Woman, reading bottom to top, with the ‘God’ printed over pubic hair. With images so rich in messaging and anti messaging, it’s hard to know where to start with many of her pieces, but Vinogradoff’s fearless disregard for established truths is gripping.
Jocelyn Allen’s self portraits, from her series Your Mind & Body is All That You’ve Got run around the second exhibition room. Tens of self portraits run around the room, showing Allen doing everything from yawning to zipping herself into a bag (right). Her face is wild, then bored, then anxious, then playful – on a basic level here work is a lively exploration of the huge volume of information carried through the human face and you will feel like you know her personally after going to this exhibition. En masse all these photographs of the same face and body are unnerving and liberating – who among us would sit down day after day and take photographs of themselves?
Allen’s work is a slap in the face to the instagram selfie. It is honesty, acceptance and self love in the face of Photoshop, light filters and pouting.
Most people I know use photographs to hide their flawed reality s – Allen uses these images to address, confront and make peace with hers. There is a lot of joy in the images, and I love the title. She is young – just 25 – but there is a huge optimism in her work – perhaps, the photos seem to suggest, once we have accepted our bodies as they are we can really have fun with them. Allen’s work is a slap in the face to the instagram selfie; it is honesty, acceptance and self love in the face of Photoshop, light filters and pouting.
Whilst Myka Baum’s photographs exploring the minutia of growth and decay may not have been an obvious companion to Allen and Vinogradoff’s photographs, the images also have a comment to make about the beauty of nature and the complexity of material things. The title – Miss Havishams Pantry – thematically allies the works with the rest of the exhibition: women and nature; acceptance and falsity.
Inside Out will be exhibited at Photofusion until 30 August and on Tuesday 27 August there is a gallery event where the photographers will be in conversation about their art and the themes they’ve been working around. Click here to find out more.
Ruth Waters is the Co Arts Editor for the Brixton Blog and Bugle. Ruth can be found tweeting here.
