Julie Mehretu was born in 1970 in
Mehretu uses signs and symbols and pairs them with architectural imagery to create her elaborate paintings. Mehretu's work combines maps, urban-planning grids, and architectural forms to convey historical narratives and fictional landscapes. Mehretu creates paintings that combine abstract forms with the familiar, such as the Roman Coliseum and floor plans from international airports. She is simultaneously engaged with the formal concerns of color and line and the social concerns of power, history, globalism, and personal narrative. According to Mehretu, she is interested in "the multifaceted layers of place, space, and time that impact the formation of personal and communal identity."
The underlying structure of her work consists of socially charged public spaces, such as, government buildings, museums, stadiums, schools, and airports, all drawn in the form of maps and diagrams. After building a base of several layers of these structures, Mehretu maps out her large swirling clouds. Much like the human population of a geographical area, these large areas of marks are comprised of individuals – individuals who are capable of social change. These clouds become tribes, nations, and entire cultures capable of growth, trade, movement, conflict or extinction.
What the viewer can appreciate about the work is that in spite of its complexity, Mehretu strives to give her viewer some sort of entry point - whether it is an architectural element or a specific color or shape. The “Stadia” series does just that. The architectural elements in the “Stadia” triptych are tracings of every stadium imaginable – from ancient amphitheaters to the most recently constructed sports arenas. These structures are capable of housing an infinitely large audience and serves as the theater for some super spectacle. Because the stadium renderings are renderings not technical drawings, the Stadia series begins as literally a collection of viewpoints. Strung across the open fields are rows and rows of pennants, flags and abstract shapes and colors that reference elements from the flag of every nation on earth. There is something for all spectators regardless of city or country of origin. Somewhere in these rows of colors, there is an element or structure a spectator can recognize and relate to.
Istanbul
Renegade Delirium
Renegade Excavation
Stadia 1
Stadia 3
4 comments:
I think that Mehretu use of signs and symbols paired with architectural imagery work together to create a sense of place and space in her paintings. Her work evokes the visuality of maps and grids and makes you as the viewer want to find order within the vast landscapes. I have actually studied Mehretu in my Arts in Post-Colonial Africa class last fall in the context of art of the contemporary African Diaspora. Her work was featured in an exhibition entitled Ethipoian Passage at the National Museum for African Art in D.C. for the exhibtion she created a site-specific work that is very similar to her others and dealt with the idea of migrancy and placemaking. Here is the website for the show if anyone is curious:
http://africa.si.edu/exhibits/passages/migrancy.html
I really think the idea of placemaking is a really interesting lens in which to look at mehretu's work. Since her work is informed by grids, maps and urban environments that are fictional or hybrid artistic creations the idea of establishing order and stabliity is questioned -- questioning how we relay on placemaking to help create our identity or contrast the movement of individuals from one place to the next in an ever more globalized world -- it is also interesting how Mehretu's identity as an Ethiopian born women who now lives in the U.S.influences her work and creates yet another layer of meaning to her paintings.
In Mehretu's paintings are appealing to me because of all the flags/symbols and action actions flowing through the detailed paintings. When I look at paintings “stadia 2” and “Stadia 3” I think of pools competed in and the energy of many countries coming together. One pool that comes to mind is near Seattle. Here is a picture... http://www.daytonabeachswimming.org/2006%20Spring%20Nationals%20113.jpg
I like what Rachel had to say about Mehretu's paintings in terms of place and space. I think Mehretu's paintings are so compelling, and I wish that I could see one in person to get close to see the detail in them. Especially in the Stadia pieces, I get this sense of chaos and spinning, with the different uses of line and shape, but at the same time, since these paintings do not look unplanned and loose, I get a sense of order.
I like that there is this universal quality to her paintings as well. Alex said that in one of the Stadias there are symbols, colors, and shapes from every flag in the world. I think that's so interesting in describing personal and cultural identity.
I agree with everyone so far. Going back to our last critique and people (myself included) talking about the complexity they were going for - ours were nowhere near as complex and detailed as these. Of course, complex is a relative term.
I too would like to see one of these in person. Often I think the level of scale and detail can result in an overwhelming product - but in this case I have a feeling the level of excitement would negate the overwhelming feeling (at least the negative overwhelming feeling). Rauschenberg and Salle are two artists that come to mind because their collage style makes their work complex and confusing - although they don't use scale in the way Mehretu does.
-Cleighton
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