Research: The Beginning, and some reasons why...

Since my project this year will focus on my new identity as a single mother, during my meeting with Jeff and Tom on Thursday we briefly discussed the stigma toward single-motherhood that makes something already so difficult that much more of a struggle. I confess that at times I hate to call myself a single mother; it just isn't a pleasant thing to be associated with. Too many people immediately jump to conclusions and place judgment - all single mothers must be out to earn welfare, right?

I just started some reading on the subject, and one book that I found suggests a lot of the thoughts that people have towards single mothers, and none of the stereotypes apply to me. I find this odd, because I know I am not alone in my circumstances. Anyway, here is an interesting excerpt. I think it is important to be aware of how false stereotypes are. Read away.

"'Welfare' has become the code word for the 'welfare-queen' - the inner-city, young African American mother that has children in order to stay on welfare, and produces multiple generations of welfare recipients. These families are characterized by neglect, substance abuse, crime, and delinquency. Poverty is the fault of the individual - in this case, the single mothers - rather than the structural forces of society, and welfare has been constructed as a major cause of lack of work effort, unwed motherhood, promiscuity, teenage child bearing, school failure, substance abuse,and other forms of deviant behavior. By stigmatizing the "other" it validates the righteousness of the majority."
- from Blame Welfare, Ignore Poverty and Inequality by Joel F. Handler

Artist: Jeff Wall

Jeff Wall is best known for his large-scale back-lit cibachrome photographs. Our teacher Jeff suggested that I take a look at his work, especially the images where he appears more than once in the frame, such as Double Self Portrait, which I am posting below.

I did not realize that I was already familiar with Wall's work, but who has not seen The Destroyed Room? I enjoyed looking at more of his work that I had not seen yet, and it was interesting to try to relate it to my own concept. I love how he seems to be documenting things he has seen/experienced, but with reconstructed scenes. This has definitely got me thinking. . .

Some of my favorites:

Double Self Portrait, 1979

Picture for Women, 1979

The Destroyed Room, 1978

Mimic, 1982

Artist: Chris Verene

Verene's work reveals an artist committed to documenting the hope and spirit in his family’s community. Through the works on Galesburg, the viewer is shown the simple, average human stories taking place in the declining American Midwest. Verene’s unstaged documentary color photography, with it’s Arbusian style, is largely appreciated for its honesty, intense color, and composition.

Chris Verene has a deadpan-documentary style that I really admire. His images draw on personal experience, which of course I relate to my own work. His images combined with brief text tell stories; some amusing, others touching or worrisome. I'm thinking about taking more of a deadpan approach this time around, and documenting something . . . important (not sure what yet!) And I might be incorporating text again. Chris Verene was the first artist that came to my mind for inspiration. Some of his work:





See his website here.