In Striking Assemblages, Portia Munson Elucidates Societal Constraints on Women
“Serving Tray #6” (2022), found figurines, string, rope, and serving tray, 29 x 17 1/2 x 18 inches. Photo by JSP Art Photography. All images © Portia Munson, courtesy of the artist and P·P·O·W, New York, shared with permission
In Striking Assemblages, Portia Munson Elucidates Societal Constraints on Women
November 27, 2024
ArtSocial Issues
Kate Mothes
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From a vast accumulation of found and readymade consumer products, Portia Munson has created elaborate sculptures and installations for more than three decades that explore the thinly veiled messages and codes embedded in mass-produced objects.
Based in Catskill, New York, the artist first began working with found consumer items like plastic figures and kitsch in 1989 when she presented an early version of a bright pink assemblage titled “Pink Project: Table” for her MFA thesis exhibition at Rutgers University.
“Pink Project: Bedroom” (2011-ongoing), found pink plastic and synthetic objects along with salvaged pink bedroom furnishings, 96 x 216 x 120 inches. Photo by JSP Art Photography
Munson had been collecting pink plastic objects to use as references for paintings, but over time, they began to overtake her studio. “I realized it was a piece unto itself,” she says. “If you have an idea and something you want to express, then you find the medium that’s best going to express those ideas.”
Pink emerged as a central interest for Munson as she began to interrogate why the color is associated with women, especially babies and young girls. For years, she collected anything that was pink, plastic, and manufactured on a mass scale, often rummaging through knick-knacks at garage sales, thrift stores, and flea markets.
Over time, Munson’s pieces expanded to include immersive environments constructed entirely from a single color, such as the fabric-draped interior of “Garden” or the Pink Project series that continues through works like “Pink Project: Bedroom.”
“Bound Angel” (2021), found figurines, lamps, candles, string and rope, wedding gowns as tablecloth, extension cords, and oval table, 192 x 68 x 66 inches. Photo by Lance Brewer
Tables and serving trays provide platforms for Munson’s seemingly jumbled compositions, bundling numerous figurines together with string and rope, like in her Serving Tray series or the large-scale “Bound Angel.”
“Serving Tray #6,” for example, presents a mix of ceramic and glass representations of women, tethered with string and perched on a silver platter. Munson describes the group of blindfolded, fettered figures as “sacrificial martyrs, inviting the contemplation of what we are being fed as a culture and who ultimately pays for it.”
Displayed across the entirety of a cloth-covered oval dining table, “Bound Angel” brings together dozens of found white statuettes and lamps, many of which depict angels. Munson has wrapped rope and string around their bodies and faces, emphasizing the constraints society places on women, illuminating struggles that may be hidden in plain sight.
Detail of “Bound Angel.” Photo by Lance Brewer
“This piece is one in a series of works that explore how femininity and the female body are portrayed in our culture,” Munson says in a statement. She adds:
“Bound Angel” reviles the insatiable, consumerist, sexist, and repressive value systems which degrade society. By bringing these objects together, this piece harnesses their collective power, transforming their original function to pacify, sexualize, and infantilize women into one of retaliation, confrontation, and strength.
“Bound Angel” will be on view at Art Basel Miami Beach in the Meridians area, a sector of the fair dedicated to large-scale installations, sculptures, and performances. The show runs from December 6 to 8, where Munson’s work will be presented by P·P·O·W. Find more on the artist’s website.
“Pink Project: Bedroom” (2011-ongoing), found pink plastic and synthetic objects along with salvaged pink bedroom furnishings, 96 x 216 x 120 inches. Photo by Daniel Salemi
Detail of “Pink Project: Bedroom.” Photo by JSP Art Photography
“Crescent Moon” (2024), found figurines, string, and thread, 26 x 30 x 8 inches. Photo by JSP Art Photography
“The Garden” (1996), found/recycled manufactured synthetic and plastic floral and garden-related objects with salvaged floral bedroom furnishings, dimensions variable
Detail of “The Garden”
“Nightstand” (2021), found figurines, lamps, string and rope, and bedside table, 51 1/2 x 34 x 27 inches. Photo by JSP Art Photography
“Pink Moon” (2024), found figurines, string, and thread, 18 x 18 x 7 inches. Photo by JSP Art Photography
Installation view of “Bound Angel” at P·P·O·W. Photo by Lance Brewer
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