Self-Portrait (Actress),
after Audrey Hepburn 3, 1996.

Yasumasa Morimura ­
Deconstructing Cultural Myths

by John Brunetti

Societies' myths that shape one's sense of cultural, racial, and sexual identity are increasingly the subject of contemporary artists who, through both provocation and stealth, challenge stereotypical images and the conditioned responses that they are meant to elicit. Since the late 80's, 47 year old Japanese artist Yasumasa Morimura has addressed the complex and overlapping definitions of identity in contemporary society through a compelling body of photographic images that derive their strength from the multiple associations they evoke. In the process, Morimura creates works that accomplish the difficult task of melding introspective examinations of sexual and racial identity with broader cultural criticism.

Using significant paintings from Western art history, and figures from American popular culture as sources, Morimura theatrically stages life-sized photographic self-portraits that are indebted to both onnagata, the Kabuki theater form of female impersonation, as well as Modern photography's lengthy examination of sexual ambiguity, as epitomized by the artist Marcel Duchampís infamous female alter ego, Rrose Selavy. Through meticulous attention to re-creating the details of the images he appropriates, and his own chameleon-like ability to transform himself into the roles he is playing, Morimura creates hypnotic works that seduce one with their familiarity and formal beauty, while subtly altering conventions enough to unnerve one with the unexpected sexual and cultural juxtapositions.