For this assignment, we were tasked with finding a portrait that we saw displayed in the National Portrait Gallery and discuss our reactions to the piece, and a short analysis on the art styles. Unfortunately, I am not a visual artist. I’m a theatrical artist. So a lot of my thoughts surrounding this piece should be taken with a grain of salt.
The piece that I have chosen to discuss is a piece titled, “Me as Warhol in drag with scar” by Gillian Wearing. The piece, (as pictured below) is a self-portrait of Wearing dressed in drag as American Pop artist, Andy Warhol. The artist is wearing a pair a jeans, a black crop top, and a leather jacket. It’s also worth noting that along the artists stomach are multiple scars that appear to be very fresh and still have stitches in them. The plaque next to the portrait tells us that much of Wearing’s work focuses on “identity, self-preservation and the performative nature of portraiture.” The plaque goes on to say, “Wearing considers how identity can be a form of protection, as well as a form of exposure and here she creates the appearance of Warhol by using prosthetics, wigs and makeup. The scar relates to Warhol’s near-fatal shooting in 1968 and can symbolize the psychological aftermath of this event…the portrait becomes a dialogue about the public masks we war and the stories we tell about ourselves”.
I found this portrait particularly interesting because as a queer person, I have always resonated with the image of masks and hiding behind different things for the sake of self-preservation. And I thought that the artist using the image of Andy Warhol, who was a trailblazer in the queer Pop Art movement was such a brilliant way to pay homage to the idea of putting different masks on. I also think that the contrast of the white background with all black clothing is really effective at making the artist pop. I also thought that it was incredibly effective including the scars on the stomach as a representation of the wounds that Warhol faced because of the Assassination attempt. I didn’t know anything about the assassination attempt, but upon learning about it, I think it was so clever how the artist included that detail. Gun violence is ever so present in our world today and is especially prevalent in the queer community. So getting to see someone comment on that aspect of queer life was a touching moment, and a great way to start off pride month!
-R
Theatre in London U of A 