Bullet Revisited #3
Artist
Lalla Essaydi
(Moroccan (active Boston), born 1956)
CultureMoroccan
Date2012
MediumChromogenic print triptych
DimensionsEach panel: 23 3/4 × 19 1/16 × 1 1/16 in. (60.3 × 48.4 × 2.7 cm)
SignedSigned in ink, printed title, date and number 15/15 on a label affixed to the reverse of the left panel's flush-mount.
Credit LineMuseum purchase, in memory of Alice R. and Sol B. Frank
Object number2019.11
Not on view
DescriptionDepicts a reclining woman looking directly at the viewer. Her body covered in calligraphy, applied by the artist with henna. Closer examination reveals that the gold patterns of the walls, floor, furniture, and clothing are composed of cut-and-polished bullet casings.Label TextLalla Essaydi Moroccan, born 1956 Bullet Revisited #3, 2012 Three chromogenic prints (photographs) This shimmering photograph may seem purely decorative, but look closer and you’ll see that the golden patterns are composed of polished bullet casings. A striking take on violence perpetuated against women, the work reflects in particular on the events following the Arab Spring in particular. As the artist has said, “Women have been at the forefront of the uprisings...and as soon as these new regimes took hold, women were subordinated anew.” The mixing of beauty and violence is meant to defy expectations. Here the reclining female sitter defiantly returns our gaze. Museum purchase 2019.11Exhibition History"5 Years of Photography: Building the Chrysler Collection," Photography & Focus Galleries, Chrysler Museum of Art, Norfolk, VA, June 26 - November 10, 2019.
