On the 27th of October 2016, I visited the city of Manchester on a trip with college. Whilst in Manchester, we visited two of the cities galleries, the Manchester City Gallery and the Whitworth Gallery. In both galleries I found many thought provoking and inspiring artists. This entry will be focused on photographs by Cosey Fanni Tutti, 'ACTION'.
I found examples of her work in the Whitworth gallery and honestly at first; they honestly struck me as unbearable to look at directly but as I made my second trip around the gallery, her work really stuck in my mind and couldn't help but think about it's controversial themes, even upon leaving the gallery. In my personal experience, feminist artwork is usually out to shock it's audiences and create a reaction but in this case, Tutti's work impacted me differently. It was almost like I didn't want to look at it, like a hard truth to come to terms with and it shocks me that her efforts within the feminist movement, were barely recognised by audiences of the times. Maybe it was due to their questionable themes or maybe because she is known far more widely for her music career in UK band 'Throbbing Gristles'.
The series of photographs I had discovered was the results of a 3 day performance, shot in Hayward Gallery, London in 1979 named 'ACTION'. All of Tutti's work seems to have been inspired by her own research as previously, Tutti had posed for pornographic magazines - which she exhibited as her own art work. Shown in the Whitworth Gallery were only 5 of the original body of 12 images all shot by her artistic partner 'Sleazy' (Peter Christopherson). The photographs depict a young woman (Cosey Fanni Tutti) who seems to look rather distressed in an uncomfortable state. She is tied up, gagged and dressed in very little. Her legs are bound in blue rope that wraps all the way around both legs and on one leg seems to have caused a large weeping gash on the shin, fake of course. The body suit that is worn is soaked in fake blood around the crotch and has had two circles cut out of the chest, exposing both breasts. All of these components speak loudly as independent factors, even though they may only be small details in the images; each one portrays an element that contributes towards modern day feminism.
The objects that lay beside Tutti on the floor, seem to have been chosen to work alongside the aesthetic of the performance and each seem to have a true grittiness to them even though they are, after all, just everyday objects including mirrors, scissors and small scraps of material.
Cosey Fanni Tutti's name, which I was previously unaware of before research, is a play on words from the famous opera, 'Così fan tutte' by Lorenzo Da Ponte. From Italian directly translates as 'they (women) all do the same' potentially a tactical choosing of name as her art is an obvious following of the European avant-gaude movement known as 'Dada'. A movement started in the early 1900s by artists testing the fundamentals of modern art and how far they could push boundaries.
I personally think that Tutti's work would be taken more seriously in this generation by audiences as we are currently in the fourth wave of feminism movements. Perhaps her outrageous photographs would be treated less as a disgrace but more of an art movement of itself, as intended. The images that had been produced from the performance were very much ahead of their time and portrayed a new way for women to think, to be confident without shame or indignity and maybe her work has inspired today's feminist artists in creating their works, therefore being part of a much bigger and longer on running movement for feminists and art.
I found examples of her work in the Whitworth gallery and honestly at first; they honestly struck me as unbearable to look at directly but as I made my second trip around the gallery, her work really stuck in my mind and couldn't help but think about it's controversial themes, even upon leaving the gallery. In my personal experience, feminist artwork is usually out to shock it's audiences and create a reaction but in this case, Tutti's work impacted me differently. It was almost like I didn't want to look at it, like a hard truth to come to terms with and it shocks me that her efforts within the feminist movement, were barely recognised by audiences of the times. Maybe it was due to their questionable themes or maybe because she is known far more widely for her music career in UK band 'Throbbing Gristles'.
The series of photographs I had discovered was the results of a 3 day performance, shot in Hayward Gallery, London in 1979 named 'ACTION'. All of Tutti's work seems to have been inspired by her own research as previously, Tutti had posed for pornographic magazines - which she exhibited as her own art work. Shown in the Whitworth Gallery were only 5 of the original body of 12 images all shot by her artistic partner 'Sleazy' (Peter Christopherson). The photographs depict a young woman (Cosey Fanni Tutti) who seems to look rather distressed in an uncomfortable state. She is tied up, gagged and dressed in very little. Her legs are bound in blue rope that wraps all the way around both legs and on one leg seems to have caused a large weeping gash on the shin, fake of course. The body suit that is worn is soaked in fake blood around the crotch and has had two circles cut out of the chest, exposing both breasts. All of these components speak loudly as independent factors, even though they may only be small details in the images; each one portrays an element that contributes towards modern day feminism.
The objects that lay beside Tutti on the floor, seem to have been chosen to work alongside the aesthetic of the performance and each seem to have a true grittiness to them even though they are, after all, just everyday objects including mirrors, scissors and small scraps of material.
Cosey Fanni Tutti's name, which I was previously unaware of before research, is a play on words from the famous opera, 'Così fan tutte' by Lorenzo Da Ponte. From Italian directly translates as 'they (women) all do the same' potentially a tactical choosing of name as her art is an obvious following of the European avant-gaude movement known as 'Dada'. A movement started in the early 1900s by artists testing the fundamentals of modern art and how far they could push boundaries.
I personally think that Tutti's work would be taken more seriously in this generation by audiences as we are currently in the fourth wave of feminism movements. Perhaps her outrageous photographs would be treated less as a disgrace but more of an art movement of itself, as intended. The images that had been produced from the performance were very much ahead of their time and portrayed a new way for women to think, to be confident without shame or indignity and maybe her work has inspired today's feminist artists in creating their works, therefore being part of a much bigger and longer on running movement for feminists and art.
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