Narrator

Curator, Eva Respini

Eva Respini

These pictures feature women of a certain age from the top echelons of polite society. All of the photographs are in opulent frames, presumably to be installed in the grand rooms or foyers of these women’s mansions. The artist photographed herself against a green screen and then she made photographs, throughout New York City, as well as in Spain, and then digitally inserted the backdrops.

In a certain sense, all of these characters are vulgar, and quite tragic. If you look closely you see the telltale signs of cosmetic alteration, thick makeup, costume jewelry—all elements that reveal themselves as an artificial façade.

These photographs were made in 2008, before the financial collapse, and the size alone seem to be a comment on an age of excess, on class and a status-obsessed society. These pictures are not just about the process of aging, but about the way in which these women are trapped by their own status and by the demands placed on them.

While these photographs have been interpreted as cruel, there is a warmth towards these characters that the artist has felt.