Untitled
Untitled, 2015, hair, ring, thread, mattress fabric, fabric, wood, plexiglass
Marriage constitutes a socio-religious construct which has a fundamental position in most cultures. In contemporary western societies the concept of marriage is often being questioned and challenged but to a large extend it is still deeply rooted in the collective unconscious as a desirable or even essential development in a heterosexual adult person’s life. This legal or official union of two persons is often romanticized and anticipated, especially by women. Film industry, television and other media, literature, folk and fairy tales have been feeding this idealized perception of marriage which is frequently and explicitly disproved in real life.
Marital status - both the existence and lack of marriage - is often the source of distress, despair and misery. The commitment and the obligations that marriage enforces are in many cases restricting individual’s freedom, entrenching a certain perception of love and co-existence leaving no space for alternative models of relationship and fostering stereotypes. Women that feel trapped in a marriage or even worse suffer violence - physical, sexual, and/or emotional - are reluctant to expose such situations or take action. Oppression, guilt and shame are encapsulated behind the walls that the institution of marriage raises around individuals while sexuality and bodily integrity might suffer as well. And although the percentage of divorces rises the taboos related to marriage are yet not at all abolished. As a counterpart being single, by choice or not, is perceived as a failure to fulfill one’s purpose on earth and as a deficiency causing sentiments of pity and unfulfillement. The specific work is an invitation to re-consider and re-negotiate the concept of marriage and all the taboos that still exist around it regarding the way women experience it.
Marriage constitutes a socio-religious construct which has a fundamental position in most cultures. In contemporary western societies the concept of marriage is often being questioned and challenged but to a large extend it is still deeply rooted in the collective unconscious as a desirable or even essential development in a heterosexual adult person’s life. This legal or official union of two persons is often romanticized and anticipated, especially by women. Film industry, television and other media, literature, folk and fairy tales have been feeding this idealized perception of marriage which is frequently and explicitly disproved in real life.
Marital status - both the existence and lack of marriage - is often the source of distress, despair and misery. The commitment and the obligations that marriage enforces are in many cases restricting individual’s freedom, entrenching a certain perception of love and co-existence leaving no space for alternative models of relationship and fostering stereotypes. Women that feel trapped in a marriage or even worse suffer violence - physical, sexual, and/or emotional - are reluctant to expose such situations or take action. Oppression, guilt and shame are encapsulated behind the walls that the institution of marriage raises around individuals while sexuality and bodily integrity might suffer as well. And although the percentage of divorces rises the taboos related to marriage are yet not at all abolished. As a counterpart being single, by choice or not, is perceived as a failure to fulfill one’s purpose on earth and as a deficiency causing sentiments of pity and unfulfillement. The specific work is an invitation to re-consider and re-negotiate the concept of marriage and all the taboos that still exist around it regarding the way women experience it.
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