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© 2005-2008
Website by D. Maisel
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This series developed from the photo portraits Rosenberg made each year as a contribution to the Winter Fair at her daughter's school. As is the case all over, face painting is a popular activity there. Children like to be painted as tigers, pirates or vampires. Moreover, parents like to have their children photographed on these occasions. Each portrait provides children an opportunity for to project a fantasy of themselves to others. Face painting literally added another layer to one's identity. What distinguishes these portraits is the effort to balance disguise and authenticity, combined with a childish delight in masquerade itself. While painting a child's face can be beautiful, who in the end takes it seriously? This apparent contradiction attracted Rosenberg. She began inviting various artists to paint children's faces, which she then photographed. She prints the portraits in color, 40"x30", much larger than life. The identities they call into question involve not only that of the child but also that of the artist-as-stylist. Rosenberg had originally envisioned a uniform approach to these portraits. Yet, typically, each collaboration demands a unique treatment. Thus, the series is diverse. Some of the artists who have participated so far include: John Baldessari, Monica Bonvicini, James Casebere, Jimmy Durham, Maria Eichhorn, Rainer Ganahl, Dan Graham, Nick Guanini and Karen Schneider, Mary Heilmann, Christine and Irene Hohenbuchler, Jacqueline Humphrey, Joan Jonas, Mike Kelley, Harmony Korine, Louise Lawler, Allan McCollum, John Miller, Matt Mullican, Vic Muniz, Tony Oursler, Jim Shaw, James Siena, Laurie Simmons, Kiki Smith, Michael Smith, Haim Steinbach, Christopher Williams and Sue Williams. Rosenberg's role in all this is to help the artists realize their ideas, to make the children comfortable and to produce a portrait that allows for artifice and self-expression. Wooster Gardens Gallery, New York, Richard Telles Fine Art, Los Angeles, Windows Gallery, Brussels have all featured solo exhibitions of this work. They were also shown at Marella Arte Contemporanea, Milan, Italy. |