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Francesca Woodman: On Being an Angel
Francesca Woodman: On Being an Angel
December 17, 2015
Francesca Woodman, From Space 2, providence Rhode Island, 1976
© George and Betty Woodman
Foam of Amsterdam presents a retrospective exhibition featuring works from the exceptional œuvre of American photographer Francesca Woodman (1958–1981). On view from 18 December, 2015 until 9 March, 2016.
The most significant subject in Francesca Woodman’s work was Francesca Woodman herself. She used photography as an extremely personal means of expression, as if wearing her skin inside out, making herself the only subject of her work. Her photographs were shown in a number of major international exhibitions and they have inspired artists all over the world.
Before committing suicide at the age of twenty-two, Woodman explored themes such as gender, representation, sexuality and corporality. Her oeuvre consists of a large number of self-portraits. A striking aspect of her work is that she is either explicitly naked, or in contrast, attempts to hide her body: squeezed into a cupboard, behind the wallpaper, wrapped in plastic or material, or in a shroud of movement. She photographs herself in interiors punctuated by evidence of decay. Even when other people feature in Woodman’s photographs, they function purely as a stand-in for the artist. Woodman’s photographs showcase a range of symbolist and surrealist influences, and in many cases they evoke oppressive feelings.
Francesca Woodman grew up in a family of artists and began taking photographs in her teens. From 1975 to 1978 she studied at the Rhode Island School of Design. Her oeuvre is usually divided into periods: the early work, her work as a student in Providence, work made in Italy (1977–1978) or at the MacDowell Colony and, finally, the work she produced from 1979 in New York until her death in 1981. She left several hundred gelatine silver prints, although she also experimented with other techniques.
Please find more information at FOAM
The most significant subject in Francesca Woodman’s work was Francesca Woodman herself. She used photography as an extremely personal means of expression, as if wearing her skin inside out, making herself the only subject of her work. Her photographs were shown in a number of major international exhibitions and they have inspired artists all over the world.
Before committing suicide at the age of twenty-two, Woodman explored themes such as gender, representation, sexuality and corporality. Her oeuvre consists of a large number of self-portraits. A striking aspect of her work is that she is either explicitly naked, or in contrast, attempts to hide her body: squeezed into a cupboard, behind the wallpaper, wrapped in plastic or material, or in a shroud of movement. She photographs herself in interiors punctuated by evidence of decay. Even when other people feature in Woodman’s photographs, they function purely as a stand-in for the artist. Woodman’s photographs showcase a range of symbolist and surrealist influences, and in many cases they evoke oppressive feelings.
Francesca Woodman grew up in a family of artists and began taking photographs in her teens. From 1975 to 1978 she studied at the Rhode Island School of Design. Her oeuvre is usually divided into periods: the early work, her work as a student in Providence, work made in Italy (1977–1978) or at the MacDowell Colony and, finally, the work she produced from 1979 in New York until her death in 1981. She left several hundred gelatine silver prints, although she also experimented with other techniques.
Please find more information at FOAM
Francesca Woodman, From Space 2, providence Rhode Island, 1976
© George and Betty Woodman
Francesca Woodman, Self deceit 1, Rome, Italy, 1978
© George and Betty Woodman
Francesca Woodman, Untitled, Rome, Italy, 1977-78
© George and Betty Woodman