Construction of Critique
Arts
HAVC 155: Constructing Cleopatra: power, sexuality and femininity across the ages
In this essay I explore the subversive potential of the work by contemporary artist Yasumasa Morimura (1951 -). In the artwork Elizabeth Taylor 1 (Cleopatra) (1995, fig. 1,) Morimura stages himself as Elizabeth Taylor in Cleopatra (dir. Mankiewicz, 1963, fig. 2). By positioning himself within the framework of already established gender roles, Morimura uses and manipulates the exact stereotypes that he criticizes. Consequently, his art becomes a standpoint of critique.
