Monday Muse: Stacy Greene, Lipsticks, 1992
Monday Muse is back for 2021! The first muse of this year is an old favorite of mine and may become a new favorite of yours, Stacy Greene’s 1992 photograph series Lipsticks.
Greene was inspired to take photographs of lipstick after her friend dropped her tube on the ground and Greene picked it up and unscrewed it for her. She said, “The shape was incredible. Rosie’s lipstick excited me more than anything I had seen at the Whitney [Museum] and sparked this photographic work.“ I come across this series from time to time, in photosets on Instagram or Tumblr. I can’t remember where I first saw them, most likely on Tumblr. I remember being so fascinated by the shapes in the images and it made me curious about the women who created the “lipstick sculptures” were. What was their beauty routine? What were their favorite products? Do they keep their lipsticks in those little cases with the mirror attached I used to love getting as a kid?
Stacy Greene describes the series, “the everyday, factory, ‘ready-made’ product turned into a uniquely surreal and subconscious image – a sculpture evolving from a private daily ritual taken for granted. A personal object/process that reveals, through colors and shapes, a relationship of imprint at the periphery of the body.” I am so intrigued by the concept of the daily ritual and the way that this ritual ripples out into different physical manifestations in the world. Looking at the photographs is an intimate experience as we closely examine an intimate, and as Greene says taken for granted, daily ritual. We are confronted with odd shapes, some so strange we wonder how the lipstick is applied. We see condensation, imprints of skin, and messy tubes all in bright cropped close up. It also intrigues us to examine our own lipsticks, chapsticks, and beauty routines.
The photos feel especially poignant right now as we are all masked up to do our part in slowing the spread of the Covid-19 virus and none of us is wearing much lipstick. Right now, the photos remind us of freer times, getting ready to go out, sprucing up our faces for happy hour after work, and enjoying the method expression that makeup gives access to.
Lipsticks at Art In General, NYC - 1994
In 2021, I want to introduce a creative challenge to go along with all of my Monday Muse posts. This week, I want to challenge you to examine your routine for a “private daily ritual taken for granted” and then make a piece of art about it. It can be a photo, collage, painting, writing, whatever inspires you to create. Ask your friends about their daily rituals and compare what you do, talk about how it makes you feel, and the ways it reveals itself in the physical world. Self-care has never been more of a buzzword than in 2020-21, so we might as well take some time to examine, reflect, and inspire our art through our self-care routines. Make sure you are following @stardustcoyoteart on Instagram so you can share your piece of art inspired by this week’s muse. Also, make sure to follow Stacy Greene and check out her other works, she’s done some really exciting things with mixed media and more photography.
Happy 2021! Let’s use this time to be creative, generative, and exploratory. I’ll be sharing my challenge piece on here and on Instagram and I can’t wait to see yours! - Sierra
