Archival Degradation

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  About the Exhibition

  Macey Boren

  What does the legacy of a Greek God mean to contemporary viewers when we ignore the glorification of rape for pristine marble craftsmanship?

  For centuries, images of rape have been venerated throughout the most prestigious art museums in the world. Our visual culture is inundated with images of the female nude, an inherently objectifying, male-constructed artistic tradition perpetuated without question. Machines for Suffering confronts these deeply ingrained paradigms of misogyny, in which men are the arbiters of great art and women are the mere objects they use to create it.

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  Archival Degradation

  Macey Boren

  Archival Degradation is the title of this piece and the namesake of the exhibition. The term is a double entendre, referring to the conservation of both physical objects and cultural paradigms of misogyny. “Archival” not only denotes the systematic preservation of information in a historical archive, but it also delineates physical materials that are durable, resistant to deterioration, and that last for centuries. “Degradation” references both this physical deterioration of a material and the conceptual degradation of women. Thus, the phrase “Archival Degradation” implies that the objectification of women is archival, or preserved in multiple ways.

  Oil on canvas, 24" x 30"

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  Assault Tourists

  Macey Boren

  3D printed figures are shown on pedestals within an architectural structure. Furthering the theme of institutional critique, this sculpture utilizes the Louvre’s architecture, similar to The Louvre's Unspoken Atrocities. The distortions present within the figures aim to evoke the objectification and mass consumption of women's bodies.

  3D Printed Plastic and Laser Engraved Acrylic, 14" x 5" x 9.5"

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  Fantasy Violation

  Macey Boren

  Fantasy Violation bridges the gap between classical art and contemporary culture. The floral designs in this piece are laser cut and adhered to the oil painting, representing a cross between western artistic historical traditions and contemporary culture and creation. This piece references the popular HBO series Game of Thrones. The male directors’ approach to excessively depicting rape within the series is rooted in an inherent misogyny that aims to desensitize viewers to acts of rape, and create for more opportunities for female actresses to be nude on screen. The dragon shown in Fantasy Violation is not only derived from Game of Thrones, but is also named after a rapist in the story.

  Oil and Laser Cut Paper on Canvas, 36" x 72"

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  History Written by Men

  Macey Boren

  This sculpture is an altered copy of an 8th edition Janson’s History of Art, a current version of one of the most popular art history textbooks. Art depicting the pursuit and assault of women is featured heavily in this textbook. Conceptually, History Written by Men interrogates the prevalence of misogynistic visual traditions in both historical contexts and contemporary ones like art history curriculum.

  Janson’s History of Art, 8th Edition, 24" x 15"

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  Machines for Suffering

  Macey Boren

  3D printed female figures confront the viewer through a laser cut architectural encasement. The figures are derived from 3D scans of a classical Venus sculpture in the collection at the Metropolitan Museum of Art; however, the figures are faceless and their bodies are heavily distorted. The laser cut architecture that houses the figures is a reproduction of the front facade of the Metropolitan Museum of Art. The incorporation of museum architecture references the systemic erasure of sexual violence within museum cataloging and interpretive materials, which the Metropolitan Museum of Art has a particularly well-documented proclivity for. "Machines for Suffering," the namesake of this sculpture, is a term Pablo Picasso used to refer to his muses, women he violently abused. Machines for Suffering simultaneously critiques the art world's indifference to and glamourization of abusive male artists, who are commemorated within museum walls.

  3D Printed Plastic and Laser Engraved Acrylic, 17" x 15" x 7.5"

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  Transgressive Viewing

  Macey Boren

  Titled Transgressive Viewing, this piece explores a progressive degradation of figures situated within museum architecture. While museums are complicit in creating a culture of misogyny, viewers are also implicated in the consumption of women’s bodies.

  Oil on canvas, 30" x 24"

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  Visceral Deterioration

  Macey Boren

  Visceral Deterioration explores the distortions of the 3D printing process in relation to traditional artistic conventions of female nudity. This work effectively facilitates a tension between contemporary means of creation and the legacies of old masters. The distortions of the 3d printing process are made to symbolize the degradation that classical art continues to uphold in contemporary settings.

  3D Printed Plastic, 15" x 36" x 8"

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  Anonymous Bodies

  Macey Boren

  Consisting of thirteen resin casts of the infamous Venus de Milo, this sculpture critiques the innately objectifying tradition of the female nude in Western art. In this work, the female body is mass produced, defaced, and put on a pedestal to be displayed for the viewer’s pleasure.

  Resin and 3D Printed Plastic, 8" x 14" x 14"

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  Oppressive Touch

  Macey Boren

  This work is based on a classical sculpture depicting an assault. Oppressive Touch utilizes the distortion of this classical masterpiece to critically examine the aestheticization of violence against women.

  Oil on canvas, 24" x 18"

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  The Louvre's Unspoken Atrocities

  Macey Boren

  This sculpture, titled The Louvre’s Unspoken Atrocities, depicts eight 3D printed caryatid figures upholding a pediment of laser engraved acrylic. In Greek myth, caryatids represented enslaved women who were taken as spoils of war in the greco-persian wars. These architectural sculptures essentially represent the punishment of women with forceful mass assault. The pediment upheld by the caryatids is derived from the exterior of the Louvre Museum. The Louvre’s Unspoken Atrocities utilizes the dissection of misogynistic architecture to deconstruct the sexism deeply ingrained within arts institutions. The use of contemporary artistic processes, such as 3D printing and laser engraving, to recreate historical imageries is crucial in forming a tension between contemporary culture and the legacies of old masters.

  3D Printed Plastic and Laser Engraved Acrylic, 9.5" x 9" x 5"

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  The True Nature of Western Art

  Macey Boren

  This work highlights the Western visual tradition of depicting women as objects of male desire.

  Oil Paint and Photo Print on Canvas, 48" x 24"

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  Prison

  Macey Boren

  Created in 2019, four years before the most recent works in the series, Prison was the first painting of the Archival Degradation series. Prison combines symbols of femininity with motifs of violence.

  Oil on canvas, 36" x 48"