I needed a break from painting and sculpture, so when I heard about the Sister Corita design exhibit, I happily sought out the Zach Feuer Gallery.
I wasn't familiar with the artist, but reading a bit about her was very enlightening. Sister Corita is described as a nun, a teacher, and a pop artist. Right away, "pop artist" and "nun" are two words that don't seem to fit in the same sentence. I was shocked to discover that a nun born in 1918 could produce such vibrant, powerful, and unconventional work. One can hardly refer to her work as subtle, given the neon colors and bold text, but there is a kind of wit in her approach to religious art. Rather than stodgy, conventional religious painting, she utilizes typography, color, and appropriation as an expression of her faith and ideals.
I was most drawn to her typographic work, which mostly depicted quotes and passages from the bible, using many different hand-lettered type forms. I admire the power and potential of quotes, I have always seen them as art objects than can stand alone rather than a just collection of words and letters and occasionally wisdom. Sister Corita used quotes from many sources, some of which included Psalms, song lyrics (Jefferson Airplane, Simon & Garfunkel), and individuals like Mark Kent and Albert Camus. The latter had a quote which came up in several of her works, "I should like to be able to love my country and stil love justice". What is wonderful about Corita is her experimentation-- seeing her multiple approaches to depicting this quote almost felt like being in a undergrad design crit.
Her use of appropriation is particularly clever (and funny!) in her piece "Wonder Bread", as she poaches the logo of a popular bread as a way of referencing the miracle (or "wonder") of the Catholic Eucharist; the breaking of the bread in the last Supper. I could be wrong, but I don't feel like many artists are comfortable with sharing their religious convictions these days; it's become somewhat taboo. Seeing Corita take the opportunity to use her unique artistic skills to celebrate her faith with bright, modern colors and a pop-culture references feels more like genuine celebration than the usual depressing, sanctimonious religious art one usually encounters. I'm reminded of a comedy sketch by Eddie Izzard in which he makes fun of the passionless, drone-ish Catholic style of "celebrating" Mass."All those sort of Christian religions, which is mainly Caucasian white people... with enough power and money to make Solomon blush. They're the only groups of people that could sing, "Hallelujah" without feeling like it's a "Hallelujah!"
Sister Mary's artwork definitely does not fall into this trap. I really enjoyed the exhibit and it definitely had an impact on me. In regard to my own work. I believe that positivity, humor, and levity can have the unique power to transform or resuscitate a timesome subject. Mary's methods were a refreshing affirmation that design can be powerful, and can be used to express conviction without being preachy. It is possible to create assertive design that is still profound, welcoming, and dare I say... fun?
glad you got to see this- it sounds really interesting!
ReplyDeleteElements of the church were pretty socially active and alternative in the 1960s, the Vatican Council itself was pretty radical. So she wasn't that unusual, apart from the work. Good post.
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