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Display sho
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male viewpoint
By Martha Murdock ,
With women facing draft registration, and many still
eagerly awaiting the ratification of the Equal Rights
Amendment, the nation is once again questioning the role
of women in society. Is the woman to be a mother, a
worker, an executive, a soldier or all these roles at once?
The Sheldon Art Gallery is showing "Feminine
Images," an exhibition of paintings and sculptures featur
ing women as its subject matter. The pieces from the
gallery's own collection range from a 15th-century
Madonna by Antonello de Saliba to a 1979 portrait of
"Mary Black Horse, Cheyenne" by James Bama.
Viewing the works in their chronological order gives
one insight as to how women have been perceived and
stereotyped through the years. All but a handful of the
pieces were done by men. For the most part, these are not
the views of women by women, but the interpretations of
the female psyche and form by men.
Traditional Madonna figure c
.Antonello de Saliba 's "Madonna and Child with the
Infant St. John" presents the traditional Madonna figure, ,
her eyes cast down in a modest, contemplative expression.
She has a child at either knee.
Next to this 15th-century oil painting is "Maternity," a
painting done by Gari Melchers, an artist who lived from
1860 to 1932, Although his figure is a Dutch woman of a
later era, he represents maternity in the same manner. The
woman's eyes are cast down. On one side she nurses
the baby. On the other, she watches a small child who has
a halo around his crown.
; The view of the woman as a childbearing saint has not
altered. The only real change might be the more realistic,
less plastic representation of the woman. She has a bit
more personality.
Through the years, women often have been portrayed
as vapid, idealized objects. Many of-the portraits show
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. wuiucii wiui cuipiy eyes aim .superficial gazes, xaay in
Pink," a 1923 oil painting' by Frederick Carl Frieseke,
pictures a soft image of a stilted figure, dressed in an elab
orate pink gown, standing before a dressing table mirror.
Her arms have the rounded form once so coveted as a sign
of beauty. Her pastel figure appears to be made of
porcelain.
Thoughtful faces
v But amidst these portrayals of women as dull artifacts
hange images of women with intense, though tul faces.
"Woman with Hat and Veil" by Alfred H. Maurer shows a ,
dark-haired woman with deep brown eyes that reflect
real thought. This 1912 oil allows the woman's intelligence
to shine through her eyes.
"Maria Y Consuelo," a portrait of a Mexican woman
with a child perched on her hip, was painted by Robert
Henri in 1906. This woman looks directly at the viewer
with a look of defiance: The strength of her character is
emphasized by the bright, intense colors of her patterned
clothes.
It is interesting to compare women's own perceptions
of their identities. "Zeffy in Bed" by Lillian Hale, who
lived from 1881 to 1963, is an indistinct image of a girl
, turning to look out from the picture plain from her lying
position in bed. ;i ' : v ; . f
Mary Cassatt and Helen Torr show more" emotion m
their portraits. Cassatt 's 1897 portrait of "Mary Say
Lawrence" shows a face reflecting temperament. The girl
looks as if she is angry or about to cry. Torr, who lived
from 1866 to 1967, painted a worn, drawn face with tired
eyes as her self-portrait. '
Captures pain
Perhaps the painting mat best captures a woman's pain
is "Woman of the Crucifixion," created by Rico Lebrun
between 1948 and 1950. This futuristic figure, composed
of planes and sharp, jutting angles shows the intensity of
pain a woman can feel. This woman is not soft like so
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Photo by Colin Hackley
Charlotte Deurscher discusses Edwin Dickenson's "Girl on a Tennis Court," a surrealistic work in the "Feminine
Images" exhibit, with students from West Lincoln Elementary School.
many of theothers but is ghostly wiro, her hollow cheeks.
Her figure appears to loom out of a "dark, empty night de
void of any comfort.
A few of the works show a realization of how women
have been used. "Della Monti,M a 1972 lithograph by Mel
Ramos, pictures a naked woman standing behind a large
catsup bottle. lTiis woman is the image of commercial
beauty with her blonde, windswept hair and ample
bosom i. - .. ' '. . : ' "
One of the most intriguing works is "Water Carrier," a
bronze sculpture done by Hugo Robus in 1956. The
sculpture is a walking woman carrying a water pot. Her
belly slightly protrudes, suggesting her fertility. She has
no head but carries her pot, balanced by her one arm and
hand, on the back of her neck. The pot is her head. The
figure embodies women's traditional roles, childbearing
and domestic chores. However, one gets the feeling that
Robus is not promoting this image but making one aware
of it.
A man's animosity
A man's animosity toward a woman is evident in R".
Allen Jensen's 1964 collage, "X-Wife." The work includes
. defaced photographs of the former wife. The main figure
in the work is the woman's Cold figure. A sharp stone jutts
out of one shoulder. Rivets and staples cover the canvas.
The top of the woman's head is missing, outlined only by,
staples. ' " : ' , ,
w But . the dignity of a woman is also portrayed. James j
Bama's oil, "Mary Black - Horse, Cheyenne," is a super-'
realist image ot an old Indian woman, ine lines or ner
face and the light in her eyes express the pride this woman
has earned. ,
In several paintings, women are used as models which
enable the artists toexplore new art styles and techniques
and experiment with form. For example, in his study of a
nude curled on a piano stool, Philip Pearlstein does not
idealize his figure but uses its faults and unappealing traits ,
to study form and line. He exaggerates the details of the
nude, enlarging the veins of the hands, and feet. ; ' '. x.
The exhibit includes works from many different
movements-am ong them impressionism, surrealism, ab"
stract expressionism, super-realism. Some very famous
images of women are in the show. One of William De
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play. - Andv Warhol's color serigraph of Jacqueline
Kennedy shows two identical images of the President's
widow, black against a lavender background.
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Feb. 17.
ITVto present Eing-Art
Once Upon A Classic presents the romance, courage
and heroic endeavors of King Arthur and his knights of
the Round Table when "The Legend of King Arthur"
premieres this Saturday at 6 p jn. on the Nebraska Educa
tional Television Network.
While most versions of the legend of Camelot have
been set in medieval times, this eight-part series unfolds in
a prior era-The Dark Ages.
It was an age in which man's desire to perform good :
acts was countered by those who only desired power and -xalth.
Such a man is Uther Pendragon, a barbarian king
with an avaricious nature and lust for power.
: "King Arthur" begings with Uther vying for Igrayne,
wife of the Duke of Gorlois. Uther kills Gorlois in battle
in order to win Igrayne's hand. and she bears him an heir
io the throne-a son named Arthur.
Merlin; wizard in Uther's court, is weary of the barbar
ic nature pervading in the kingdom and with his magical
knowledge conjures a new age and kingdom in which jus
tice and chivalry are supreme. He decides that Arthur will
reign over this new kingdom, carrying the torch of enlightenment.
;Famitasia9 tests mtereste "with week of attractions
By Brian McManus
The Lincoln Community Playhouse currently is featur
ing a week filled with activities for spectators and partici
pants, Fantasia 1980. '
n.cUn nrimarilv for vouneer audiences, it features
jugglers, a washboard band, face painting, mime, dance, a
alentine'suaypanyanamuvics.
Ine project is heaaea oy uencue neuun ouiwum,
also teaches acting classes and directs plays for the play-
house '
riiis is the second year for Fantasia," Schwinn said.
"It's a pretty difficult job. You have to second guess the
audience, trying to decide what will appeal to the largest
number of people."
Schwinn went on to say that this is less of a problem in
Lincoln because there are so many talented artists in the
city.
"This is an attempt to try new things to see where
people's interests are," Schwinn said. "You might call this
a test week. We are always looking for new ideas to give
the people in Lincoln a greater variety of things to do and
see."
Fantasia is having events at 3:30 pjn. and 7 pjn.
through Friday.
On Saturday, a film festival, co-sponsored by Theatre
Arts for Youth, will include Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, a
Laurel and Hardy film and Stevenson's Treasure Island.
There will also be lunch available for an extra fee
The events will be in the playhouse's new ChUdren's
TJieater Wing. Fantasia is one of the few events to take
place since the wing has been open..
"There is still some completion work to be done in the
children's wing," Schwinn said. "In addition to Fantasia,
WC'l1rbf. d.01ng a C0UPIe of Projects there this spring. By
next fall, the wing will be totally completed."
Schwinn said some future projects for the new wing
taclude a puppet show by the Old Market Puppet TTieater
in March and perfcimances of The Pied Piper in the
spring.
