User:205.175.98.177/gap analysis

Eleanor Antin

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Eleanor Antin


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After delving into Eleanor Antin’s photography series, “Carving: A Traditional Sculpture” for the Visual Analysis assignment, I wanted to learn more about her additional works and mediums and her background as an artist. I first glossed over her Wikipedia page and was disappointed to find that although there was a substantial write up on her works, Antin’s summary and life and education sections were almost barren. After cross referencing other sources, I found that Antin’s ethnic history and education were in fact vital to her influences as an artist and vocal feminist. Her biographical section briefly stated that she was raised as a first generation American Jew, however, they neglect to acknowledge that most of her artwork centers around the topic of nationality because of her rooted feelings of oppression as a Jewish girl growing up in the mid-20th century. In addition to the gap on her ethnicity, most of the information on Antin’s work and education document events post-marriage and birth of her son. In contrast to Wikipedia’s limiting statement of her academic accomplishments, Antin’s expansive career as a writer, artist, and teacher began long before her poet husband came into the picture. Eleanor Antin was educated in the arts beginning with her high school education focusing on art, and later ventured into writing, and philosophy before becoming an actress under the surname Eleanor Barrett. This discovery of the intersectionality of ethnicity and gender in Eleanor Antin’s history provided a new perspective to my original fascination with “Carving: A Traditional Sculpture”. This photograph series was no longer just a mockery of society’s emphasis on carving away flaws on the path towards perfection, but Antin’s outward possession of her own body. By putting her nude figure on display, she is claiming ownership and power from her stance to provide power as a woman, and the nudity also highlights her beneath the skin identity as a Jewish woman.


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* This section is in addition to the "work" heading on Eleanor Antin's Wikipedia Page, or can be an individual Wikipedia page for this stage in her artistic career.

In 1972, Eleanor Antin began to examine the complexities of race, gender, ethnicity, and class by portraying unique personas and sharing them through multimedia outlets including photography, performance art. Development of these characters were inspired by her past training in acting at the Tamara Daykarhonova School for the Stage from 1954-1956. To explore these characters, Antin began by playing the persona of a white, untalented ballerina and exhibited her through the piece, “Caught in the Act” in 1973. In this work, Antin addressed the conflict of gender and perfection by juxtaposing a perfectly balanced photograph of herself in a ballerina posture to a video that documented her unbalanced composure that was not captured in the 1/125th of a second snapshot. Antin later combined the ballerina personae with a famous African American starlet character to birth her most famous persona, “Eleanora Antinova”, the African American former ballerina from the 1920’s. Antin detailed that “Eleanora Antinova”  received “exotic” roles in performances due to her darker complexion, and vocalized the injustice of the dehumanizing hierarchical system. As “Eleanora Antinova” became more well known, critics began to view the character negatively and accused Antin of performing blackface. However, by attempting to embody this different persona, Antin explored the intersectional conflicts of being an African American woman in the 20th century. In a New York Times interview, Antin states about “Eleanora Antinova”, I like the role, and others I've taken on, because they help me get out of my own skin to explore other realities.
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 * Meeker, Carlene. "Sharing Stories Inspiring Change." Eleanor Antin. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 Feb. 2016.
 * Clements, Alexis. "The Many Faces of Eleanor Antin." Hyperallergic RSS. N.p., 29 Nov. 2013. Web. 17 Feb. 2016.
 * Electronic Arts Intermix. "Caught in the Act." Electronic Arts Intermix :, Eleanor Antin. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 Feb. 2016.
 * Glueck, Grace. "In a Roguish Gallery: One Aging Black Ballerina." The New York Times. The New York Times, 11 May 1989. Web. 17 Feb. 2016.
 * Manson, Rachel. "Bomb." BOMB Magazine — Eleanor Antin by Rachel Mason. N.p., 4 Sept. 2014. Web. 17 Feb. 2016.