4 ms·
“One question that has dogged the discovery of Maier’s photography is how a lowly nanny could make such high art. Let’s call that sexism. I’ve never heard anyon
by Jun8 8y ago
“One question that has dogged the discovery of Maier’s photography is how a lowly nanny could make such high art. Let’s call that sexism. I’ve never heard anyone ask how another exceptional Chicago outsider, the visionary writer and artist Henry Darger, could have produced his fifteen-thousand-page magnum opus while holding down a job as a janitor.”
Really? That’s precisely the question many people ask about Darger (his stuff is beyond description, you should check it out) or any other Outsider artist, for that matter. Natural talent and genius? Of course. A ton of time available due to loneliness (these artists are mostly alone) to hone your art and practice? Another important factor. And the side effects of that loneliness.
- GuiA 8y agoThe expression "outsider artist" is so silly, and very reflective of the culture and mindset that engendered it. As if there were a normative "inside" that "real artists" belong to, and that everything else is an anomaly of sorts. Following that definition to its logical conclusion, the overwhelming majority of artists who have lived on this planet have been "outsider artists". Creating art is a fundamental aspect of the human condition, and this categorization serves no purpose except the ones of pompous art dealers and critics.
- piffey 8y agoYour comment is so pointed and concise that I expected it to be a formal quotation when it reached its end. The need to feel unique leads people into these camps of delusion. This delusion is up there with the fallacy that art can only come from suffering or that being destitute is a requirement for empathetic art.
- edflsafoiewq 8y ago> his stuff is beyond description, you should check it out How do you do this? I've never been able to find even a partial reprodution of The Story of the Vivian Girls.
- ghostly_s 8y agoThere are several books reproducing much of the Vivian Girls [1] and other work, including a catalog[2] published by the museum in Chicago which holds most of his collection. Check your local library. 1. e.g. https://www.abebooks.com/9780929445151/Henry-Darger-Realms-Unreal-John-0929445155/plp https://www.abebooks.com/9780929445151/Henry-Darger-Realms-U... 2. https://www.abebooks.com/servlet/BookDetailsPL?bi=30052011097&searchurl=isbn%3D9780810913981%26sortby%3D17&cm_sp=snippet-_-srp1-_-title1 https://www.abebooks.com/servlet/BookDetailsPL?bi=3005201109...
- hinkley 8y agoI suspect the double minority status plays a part here. That is, it's classism and sexism. If she were a society woman or a male caregiver she might not have been called out on her status. I'm forever amused by the low status granted to people the gentry put in charge of their children though. Teachers. Nannies. I wonder where stablehand fits on that continuum. Or the person who cares for hunting dogs.