Thursday, November 3, 2016

Voyeur vs. Viewer: Claire Tabouret & Casey Jane Ellison


This painting and photograph was a collaboration between Claire Tabouret and Casey Jane Ellison. I was immediately drawn to this because of the lighting. There is a "night vision'" aspect to it, like the viewer looking at the painting is seeing the two girls in the dark. The title itself is really interesting too. You can see the separation between voyeur and viewer by how the girls are positioned and what decorates their body. The girl on the left has what looks like leather gloves on with a beaded necklace. She may have been in the process of undressing herself and her body language may seem suggestive, but also innocent. As though the girl is not meaning to seem suggestive, which may address the voyeur perspective, which is someone who gains sexual pleasure from watching others when they are naked. The girl on the right is simply naked and plain, which may address the viewer perspective. The viewer doesn't get any sexual pleasure from seeing someone naked and the girl's body language seems rather defensive. One could argue that her hands are imitating a gun. 

What makes this piece even more interesting is that there is a clear distinction between the two artists and their art styles. The girl on the left looks like she is painted in a cartoony realistic style on a wall, while the girl on the right is an actual person standing in front of a painting. This could also add to the perspective of voyeur-ing being seen as an unrealistic fantasy, while viewing is must more real. The cartoony realism belongs to Claire Tabouret and the photography/modeling style belongs to Casey Jane Ellison.

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