Sophia Wallace
Born1978
Seattle, Washington US
EducationSmith College
New York University
International Center of Photography
StyleConceptual artist
Photographer
Websitesophiawallace.com

Sophia Wallace (born 1978) is an American conceptual artist and photographer. She is best known for her project "CLITERACY," which addresses citizenship and body sovereignty through the medium of text-based objects, unauthorized street installation, performance and sculptural forms.[1][2][3]

Early life

Wallace was born in Seattle, Washington. She holds a BA in Government/Political Science from Smith College and a Master of Arts in Photography from New York University and the International Center of Photography.[4] In 1998, Wallace did coursework in a study abroad program in Political Theory at the University of Ghana.

Career

Conceptual framework

Wallace incorporates the use of images, video, and mixed media in her work in an effort to explore alterity, the study of otherness and the focus on dismantling the concept of sameness.[5] Wallace’s focus is to deconstruct how this concept of the other is represented within a visual framework. She examines how the visual affects gender and sexuality. The focus is on the idea of what she calls the "racialized body." Wallace is trying to explore in her work the relinquishment of gender norms and stereotypes—through images she examines and moves these issue to the forefront looking at the norms of gender.[6]

Modern Dandy

In 2011, Wallace worked in the mediums of photography and portraiture in order to examine assumptions about gender, race, and heteronormativity. She photographed professional male models who were what she called "living representations of idealized masculinity" and examine the male models in a comparative way that women are traditionally photographed. It is an examination of what is typically viewed as a passive view of women through a photographic view.[7] Exploring the origin of the concept of dandy from the 19th century thinkers Oscar Wilde and Charles Baudelaire, the works call into question gender norms.[8]

Installation view of Άδάμας (Unconquerable), 2013, by Sophia Wallace

CLITERACY

In 2012, Wallace has received international critical acclaim[9] and viral exposure for CLITERACY: 100 NATURAL LAWS.[10] The project aims to "dismantle the taboos associated with female and feminized genitals."[11][12] Using text as form, CLITERACY "explores the construction of female sexual bodies as passive vehicles of reception defined by lack. It confronts a false body of knowledge by scientists who have resisted the idea of a unique, autonomous female body and rather studied what confirmed their assumption that women’s anatomy was the inverse of male anatomy, and that reproduction was worthy of study, while female sexuality was most certainly not."[13]

Wallace has also created sculptural forms such as Άδάμας (unconquerable)',[14] the first anatomically correct sculpture of the clitoris, and Invisible Sculpture, which "addresses negation and omnipresence by denying access to the form while reinforcing its presence."[15]

Exhibitions

Wallace has presented her work in exhibitions in the U.S. and abroad, including Kunsthalle Wien Museum,[16] Art Basel Miami, Scope NY, Taschen Gallery and Aperture Gallery among others. She has had solo exhibitions at Leslie-Lohman Museum of Gay and Lesbian Art,[17] Newspace Center of Photography, Samek Art Museum, Definitely Superior Gallery,[18] and Catinca Tabacaru Gallery.[19]

Personal life

Wallace lives in Brooklyn, New York.[20]

Works and publications

Exhibition catalog

  • Walkner, Martin, Gerald Matt, Eugenio Viola, and Peter Weiermair. No Fashion, Please!: Fotografie Zwischen Gender Und Lifestyle = Photography between Gender and Lifestyle. Wien: Kunsthalle Vien, 2011. ISBN 978-3-86984-269-1

References

  1. ↑ "Sophia Wallace". Catinca Tabacaru Gallery. Retrieved 31 May 2016.
  2. ↑ Mosbergen, Dominique (29 August 2013). "Cliteracy 101: Artist Sophia Wallace Wants You To Know The Truth About The Clitoris". Huffington Post. Retrieved 7 March 2015.
  3. ↑ Valenti, Jessica (16 March 2014). "Art, gender and pleasure should collide more often – just like on the Clit Rodeo". The Guardian. Retrieved 7 March 2015.
  4. ↑ "Sophia Wallace on Artfare". Artfare. Retrieved 3 August 2021.
  5. ↑ Baldwin, Mekhi (17 May 2012). "A New Gaze: The Photography of Sophia Wallace". theGAQ. Issuu. Retrieved 7 March 2015.
  6. ↑ Weingarten, Elizabeth (20 January 2015). "How To Shake Up Gender Norms". Time. Retrieved 7 March 2015.
  7. ↑ Johnson, Kjerstin (15 June 2011). "Sm(art): Sophia Wallace: Not Your Typical Fashion Shoot". Bitch. Retrieved 7 March 2015.
  8. ↑ Frank, Priscilla (28 August 2013). "Men And Women Disrupt Gender Norms In Striking Photography Series 'Modern Dandies'". Huffington Post. Retrieved 7 March 2015.
  9. ↑ Savage, Dan (3 December 2013). "Episode 371, Season 16" (Audio podcast). Savage Love.
  10. ↑ Kolodny, Carina (26 February 2015). "HuffPost Love And Sex Podcast: The Power Of The Clitoris" (Audio podcast). Huffington Post. Retrieved 7 March 2015.
  11. ↑ Wallace, Sophia (29 November 2013). "Artist Sophia Wallace Responds to CLITERACY Critiques". The Feminist Wire. Retrieved 7 March 2015.
  12. ↑ Focus, Amon (19 April 2013). "CLITERACY: 100 NATURAL LAWS, A Conversation with Sophia Wallace" (Video interview). Amon Focus. Retrieved 7 March 2015.
  13. ↑ Wallace, Sophia. "Sophia Wallace". 100 Natural Laws. Sophia Wallace. Retrieved 31 May 2016.
  14. ↑ Wallace, Sophia. "Unconquerable". Sophia Wallace. Retrieved 11 June 2016.
  15. ↑ Wallace, Sophia. "Invisible Sculpture". Sophia Wallace. Retrieved 11 June 2016.
  16. ↑ "No Fashion, Please! 10 November 2011 to 29 January 2012". Kunsthalle Wien. Retrieved 7 March 2015.
  17. ↑ "Leslie-Lohman Museum of Gay and Lesbian Art". CONNECTIONS: The Portraits of Julie Fogarty and Sophia Wallace. Leslie-Lohman Museum of Gay and Lesbian Art. Retrieved 31 May 2016.
  18. ↑ "Definitely Superior Art Gallery". Definitely Superior Art Gallery. Retrieved 8 November 2016.
  19. ↑ "SOPHIA WALLACE: Over and Over and Over". Catinca Tabacaru Gallery. Retrieved 31 May 2016.
  20. ↑ Riese (27 February 2012). "Artists Attack! Ten Lesbian Photographers You Should Know (About)". Autostraddle. Retrieved 7 March 2015.
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