Transgender femininity
Beginning at the month of August, Cornerhouse bar will host work by Manchester based artist Gemma Parker as part of its Cornerhouse Projects programme. Timed to coincide with Manchester Pride, the new portrait and chalk studies are an exploration of transgender femininity inspired by the aesthetic of Pre-Raphaelite artist Dante Gabriel Rossetti.
When it came to defining beauty, the Victorians idealised a diminutive, fragile and delicate vision of femininity, unlike the subsequent shift in approach by the Pre-Raphaelite painters, who were drawn to more striking, bohemian models. Rossetti’s paintings are hyper-sensual and bordering upon fetishistic; focusing on tall necks, full lips, strong jaws and abundant hair. Gemma Parker has worked with her own muse, Grace Oni Smith, who was born male but has successfully transitioned as a transgender female. Both Gemma and Grace aim to further subvert any remaining residue of the passive, wilting siren, and instead champion an empowered, contemporary woman.
This latest work continues Gemma’s ongoing theme looking into the theatrics and artifice of femininity. Having practised as an artist for over 10 years Gemma has shown work across the UK and collaborated with museums and galleries. Of her current work Gemma says, ’this was a great opportunity for me to explore a side of femininity I’d never considered before, that of the transgender woman. I want this work to be a celebration of the very things that make her unique.’
Cornerhouse Projects featuring Gemma Parker runs from Thu 31 Jul 2014 - Tue 9 Sep 2014
Read MorePublished: 10-Jul-2014: (2511)
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