An Analysis of Postmodernism in Wangechi Mutu's Paintings (A Contemporary African-American Artist)

Document Type : Research Article

Authors

1 Assistant professor, Painting Department , Faculty of art Alzahra university, Tehran, Iran

2 M.A. in Painting, Department of Painting, Faculty of Art, Alzahra University, Tehran, Iran.

Abstract

Problem statement: The definition of artistic postmodernism has always faced challenges. However, it is possible to obtain a tool for analyzing the postmodernism of artworks in this period by considering components such as eclecticism, pluralism, deconstructionism, and the importance of micro-narratives and subcultures, as well as the identity crisis. In this regard, this research seeks to answer these questions What are the features of Wangechi Mutu's works? What similarities and differences can be found in the works of this artist? How are approaches to Mutu's works’  associated with postmodern keywords?
Research objective: The purpose of this study is to search for and analyze the characteristics of postmodernist art in the works of Wangechi Mutu, a Kenyan female artist living in the United States. Considering the characteristics of her works, this study uses postmodernist tools to interpret them.
Research method: This research described and analyzed a part of Wangechi Mutu's paintings based on the theoretical foundations of postmodern art through a qualitative study.
Conclusion: The results show that the artist has achieved an eclectic and plural expression, both in the structure of her works and in their content, by using visual and conceptual collages and, in general, a collage worldview. In this way, she has succeeded in breaking the foundations of macro narratives and subcultures of women, black people, and immigrants, and was consequently able to relate to the issue of an identity crisis. Mutu’s works are her socio-political statements in which she expresses and critiques the issues of racial and class discrimination in the contemporary world.

Keywords

References

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The Monthly Scientific Journal of Bagh-e Nazar
Volume 19, Issue 113
November 2022
Pages 5-18

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