 – Opening Saturday, October 16, 2021 at the Carnegie Museum of Art, Sara Greenberger Rafferty photographic works goes on view in this solo exhibition and 85th installment…){kind=link}
PITTSBURGH, PA (AAPNW) – Opening Saturday, October 16, 2021 at the Carnegie Museum of Art, Sara Greenberger Rafferty photographic works goes on view in this solo exhibition and 85th installment of the Forum series, Rafferty extends her exploration of glass as a photographic medium with a series of new works that addresses notions of aesthetics, consumerism and identity.
“We’re thrilled to present Rafferty’s new works at Carnegie Museum of Art,” said Curator of Photography Dan Leers. “Her innovative, multimedia practice resonates globally in its examination of the role of photography and glass in reinforcing consumerist tendencies and unrealistic ideals of beauty…”
Once a department store window dresser, Rafferty draws on her skills as a merchandiser to create alluring artworks that highlight the importance of digital images and also challenge normative notions of beauty and gender.
Several of the artist’s Tester pieces feature photographs of colorful palettes to address the role of cosmetics in creating unrealistic societal standards. Rafferty also incorporates images of mannequins which further underscore the disconnection between how bodies are should look versus how they actually look.
Rafferty creates other works in the exhibition by printing images in powdered glass on paper which she then fires in a kiln, burning away the paper and vitrifying the glass. “My favorite aspect of using the kiln to form, deform, and reform glass is the fact that glass ‘shows’ cuts, breaks, and separations even when it is fully fused together,” said Rafferty. “This underscores my commitment to a feminist way of making work, one which resists and questions mastery, completion, and answers. Instead, I work to ‘show my work,’ and ask more questions than I answer.”
Other imagery in the exhibition, including magnifying glasses, telephones, and power buttons, references different senses, and Rafferty encourages still deeper connection to the gallery space by including cut flowers in several of the artworks, which were selected by Carnegie Museum of Art’s Youth Arts Initiative and made in collaboration with museum staff and the artist, are intended to reflect the changing seasons and evoke the passage of time.
For more details on this show, https://cmoa.org/event/creating-glass-photographs.