“IN AND OUT OF THE STUDIO” AT THE MET

Jacqueline Groll

Anastacia Aukmen

Int. Seminar: Shift

Bridge #4, Introduction to Research

Due: November 17th, 2015

Behind every photograph, every painting, every way of self-expression, there is a story. In many cases, this story contains several levels, ranging from that of the concrete moment that the piece captures to the cultural forces that influenced it. In the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s exhibition, “In and Out of the Studio: Photographic Portraits from West Africa,”  a series of postcards and portraits created in West Africa in the period between the late nineteenth century and the mid-twentieth century demonstrates the influences of colonialism on African artists, much of whose work was being marketed for or produced for non-Africans. In his ground-breaking 1979 book, Orientalism, the postcolonial theorist, Edward Said, argued that colonial discourses deliberately skewed power in favor of Western imperialist states by controlling the ways in which colonized people were described or visualized for the Western market. Said asserted that written and visual accounts of people in colonized regions were interstitial, along with political and economic incursions, as means of “dominating, restructuring, and having authority” (Said 3) over these groups. In the case of France’s colonial enterprise in Senegal, as in many other areas under colonial control, the colonizing Western power would be depicted as being more technologically and ideologically advanced, in contravention to a less modern and inefficient indigenous population which, by implication, ‘deserved’ to be colonized by the supposedly superior Western power (Spurr 6). The indigenous population would, at best, be depicted as being quaintly appealing, erotically or mysteriously alluring, or as being would-be Westerners.  The colonialist tropes of appropriation, eroticization, and insubstantialization, in language and art, bolstered the colonialist enterprise by creating an imaginary ‘native’ population that was ineluctably different than Westerners, therefore in need of colonization, and that, with proper ‘civilizing’ influences, could eventually become part of the ‘civilized’ West.  In three photographs and three postcards in the Metropolitan Museum’s exhibition, African people are depicted using style and imagery that would appear familiar to Western viewers, while they are, at the same time, attired in apparel and depicted in a tone that would suggest ‘exoticism’ and ‘Otherness.’

In his text, The Rhetoric of Empire: Colonial Discourse in Journalism, Travel Writing, and Imperial Administration, David Spurr argues that writers and artists used colonialist tropes such as appropriation, eroticization, and insubstantialization, to underscore the ‘Otherness’ of colonial subjects while, at the same time, allowing Western audiences to experience pleasurable feelings of superiority, desire, or dreamlike escape in artistic productions that portrayed them. In using the trope of appropriation, artists and writers insist on non-European groups’ “identification with the basic values of Western civilization and [tend] to interpret their acquiescence to the colonial system as an approval of Western ideals” (Spurr 33). David Spurr asserts that seeing “non-Western peoples as having themselves become the standard bearers of Western culture is, in some ways, a more profound of colonization than that which treats them merely as sources of labor or religious conversion” (Spurr 36). Depictions using this trope portray non-Western people as being ‘potential’ Europeans: indigenous people are depicted wearing European-style clothing, using European objects, or engaging in behaviors that would be familiar to a European audience, but which would not necessarily be natural within the non-European’s own cultural milieu.

The trope of eroticization is deployed by artists and writers who seek to show colonized groups as being “both seductive and destructive” (Spurr 177). This trope often contains “a projective mechanism, originating in the colonizer’s fear of forces within the self” (Spurr 177). Indigenous people, especially women, are thereby often portrayed as seductive, sexualized ‘objects,’ who either passively endure the ‘gaze’ of European men, or who are themselves sexually voracious, desiring, but ‘Other’  and therefore threatening to European men.  This trope is often used to portray Africa itself as a feminine figure with great sexual power, which lures Europeans into “a machine of sex and death” (Spurr 181). The European, desiring the African woman, prefers to imagine that the African woman possesses unlimited sexuality and that for her, he is a locus of desire.

Like eroticization, the trope of insubstantialization depicts indigenous people as being highly desirable because they are mysterious and exist in a dreamlike world; at the same time, by implication, they are somewhat dangerous to the European colonizer, who will be invited to ‘escape’ his normal, conscious world of the rational by entering the ‘exotic’ space of the colonized. The trope depicts colonized groups as living in “‘hazardous marginal areas where social norms cease to have any meaning,’” and where Europeans can easily “move along the unstable border areas of consciousness, flirting with the danger of death or permanent madness” (Spurr 149).  This trope portrays indigenous people as being mysterious, unreal, and alluring in a sinister or semi-magical manner. The colonized region becomes an almost supernatural landscape, in which “the principle of unreality or instability” (Spurr 151) jars the European, ultimately causing him to disintegrate or dissolve as in a “delirium” (Spurr 147). Artists and writers using this trope suggest that the colonized region is a space intowhich the European is enticed by its magical elements: once he is there, he experiences a loss of self that is both pleasurable and potentially deadly.

The photograph titled, Two Reclining Women, was taken by the Senegalese artist, Mama Casset, who lived in St. Louis, Dakar, from1908–1992. The medium is Gelatin silver print, and the photograph’s dimensions are 5 × 6 7/8 in. (12.7 × 17.5 cm). The Credit Line is Visual Resource Archive, Department of the Arts of Africa, Oceania, and the Americas, with the Accession Number: VRA.2014.8.049. This photograph is demonstrative of all three tropes: appropriation, eroticization, and insubstantialization. In the photograph, the women have apparently been directed to pose in a seductive and formal manner, which was not common in the African cultures of the region. The women’s reclining suggests that they are figuratively luring the viewer into a kind of ‘bed chamber’: this sense is heightened by the women’s intense stare at the camera, which appears to be, in itself, almost a form of seduction. The women project a slightly mysterious mood; their faces are composed and serious, as if they are thinking of something very profound or even, possibly, casting a kind of spell to entrance the viewer.  The women’s semi-mystical and apparently ‘desiring’ mood suggests the tropes of eroticization and insubstantialization. These women also convey a sense of doubling which is evocative of the idea of twins. This region of Africa was known for producing an extremely high number of twins (Micheli ). This fact, if known by viewers, would add to the mysterious tone, since twin-ness is, in itself, an event that can be construed as being ‘unnatural’ – outside the general average of births. The women’s semi-seductive, yet bland expression was seen in many West African photographs; it conveys an almost uncanny sense of the women as both aggressively sexual and sufficiently passive for sexual ‘colonization’ by a male viewers. The women’s pose was known more as a Westernized stance and it would thus have presumably conveyed both a sense of the women as being European in tone and posture, and ‘exotic’ owing to their African racial characteristics. The female photographer, though herself African, thus engaged in the trope of appropriation, through which she suggested that the women had adopted the appearance and formal behavior of their colonizers. The trope thus implies that the two women have ‘agreed’ to or endorsed Western ways and that they are linked more strongly with European culture than with that of Africa. This sense is extended by the women’s attire. Both are clothed in dresses which suggest an urban, European style. While it is evident that the women are attempting to replicate a Western style of dress, there is a slight touch of African craftsmanship on the dresses, adding a mood of the ‘exotic’ African lifestyle. The bow, the minimalistic color choice and patterns, and the fittings reveal a French design, though the patterns also suggest a certain ‘tribal’ element. The women’s hair, like their clothes, contains both African and Western elements. In the African cultures of the region, it was common to use different objects, such as beads, patterns and cloths in women’s hair. The elegance and urbanity of French culture is portrayed in the women’s French-style up-do. The photograph also conveys a sense of the African women as being less ‘modern’ and advanced than the Europeans of their time period. The hair structures appear to be more reminiscent of a nineteenth century French, urban hair style than that of France in the 1950s and 960s in Senegal, Africa. Aside from the styles, their hair is wrapped in a patterned cloth, which again appears to evoke a tribal, ‘exotic’ lifestyle. They also each wear bangles, which was an African cultural form of jewelry. The overall suggestion is that these women, while possessing the attractive ‘Otherness’ of Africans, have adopted a great deal of Western style and thus, by implication, are would-be Europeans.

The photograph titled, Women, created by an unidentified artist in Senegal between the 1950s and 1960s, is in Gelatin silver print, with dimensions 9 1/2 × 7 1/4 in. (24.1 × 18.4 cm), and the Credit Line, Visual Resource Archive, Department of the Arts of Africa, Oceania, and the Americas, Accession Number VRA.2014.8.052. Similar to the other piece, the woman’s hair combines French and African elements. The woman’s hair is rolled in waves that suggest French styles of the mid-nineteenth century, again suggesting that African culture lagged behind that of France.  The woman is sitting, looking right above the camera, presumably directed by the photographer. This indirect stare is both mysterious and slightly erotic since it suggests that the woman is coyly both luring the viewer and remaining aloof.  The woman’s pose, in general, appears to be slightly romantic and even seductive, which is not a traditional West African pose. She almost appears to be posing, as if in an act. She seems to be playing the role of a quiet, yet proud woman who has a story to tell. This sense is conveyed by the way in which her hand touches her face: the very indirectness of her stare suggests that she is perhaps pondering some secret, which makes her aloof, ‘Other,’ and highly enticing to the viewer who would like to discern her hidden story. In contrast to the previous piece, the woman in this image wears a two-toned, patterned dress, which has no ‘tribal’ elements, but only the European-standard polka-dots. The pattern suggests more a Latin style than a French one, demonstrating that this African woman, in this photo which also uses the trope of appropriation to suggest the subject’s openness to Western styles, has been influenced by multiple European cultures. The woman’s braided, twisted hair style is one that can still be seen today. In general, the woman looks uncomfortable, suggesting that her pose is not natural and that she has been directed to convey this particular combination of an erotic, mysterious, African, and familiarly Western mood.  Her expression is strong and suggests action, but her body seems to be constrained in this pose, as if she is not fully committed to the stance she has been given by the photographer.

The third photograph is titled, “Woman in a Portrait Studio,” and was taken by an unidentified artist. It is done in Gelatin silver print, with dimensions 7 × 5 1/8 in. (17.8 × 13 cm). The Credit Line is Visual Resource Archive, Department of the Arts of Africa, Oceania, and the Americas, with Accession Number: VRA.2014.8.048. In this photograph, the tropes of appropriation and eroticization are prominent. The woman is dressed in Western-style clothing, with hair ornaments that are African in style. She is looking over her shoulder at the camera with a gaze that combines a sense of tremendous strength and forcefulness with a slightly seductive mood. This woman is distinct from the others. Her hair style and body size set her apart. Her hair resembles Dunkin’ Doughnut Munchkins, placed in rows. She is a voluptuous woman with prominent sexual characteristics; the camera’s emphasis on these characteristics suggests eroticization.

While viewing the Postcards portion of the In and Out of the Studio: Photographic Portraits from West Africa at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, I began comparing our modern means of communication to that of the 1800-1900s. Today, instant communication is possible, and in our postcolonial era, indigenous peoples are usually portrayed authentically, owing both to the availability of instantaneous photographs on phones and to a general desire to respect diversity and avoid stereotyping, as well as colonialist tropes. In the period of the nineteenth century and early twentieth century, however, postcards were a major means of communication, and, since they were often directed at Europeans, they used colonial tropes. This exhibition reminds us of how long it took for postcards to reach their recipients, of how inexpensive the postcard process was, and of the propensity for postcards to represent colonial subjects in ways that reinforced colonial dominance and the Orientalist sense of indigenous people as being ‘Other’ both in its positive – ‘exotic’ – and negative, or dangerous sense.. During our preview of the Postcards sector, I learned that the postcard business became extremely prosperous: there were over two dozen postcard producers in Senegal. As stated by the Metropolitan Museum of Art, “Postcards are images that are designed to travel: they are inexpensive, portable, and made in multiples.” Postcards, during the time of the 1900 to 1960s in Western Africa, were considered to be a quick and quite easy way of communication. Today we see postcards as cute, friendly symbols that we used to contact a friend or loved one, or to introduce the new holiday season. They are no longer as popular as they once were, due to our now rapid technological growth, although one still sees these “rare” pieces of paper. I personally love using post cards. The idea of writing your thoughts out on a piece of paper gives your reader a more personal feel to your message being sent. These postcards are intimate, yet also Orientalist and thus distant.

The artist who created  In Nioro (Sudan)—Wives and son of Wolof trader [A Nioro (Soudan)—Femmes et Fils de Marchand Ouolofes], was very likely Louis Hostalier (Senegal) (French, active ca. 1890-1912). It was created sometime between 1900 and 1910 in Senegal, Dakar. The postcard was made from a photomechanical format reproduction, with dimensions of 5 1/4 × 3 1/4 in. (13.3 × 8.3 cm). We are given a background story of the postcard: we know exactly who the intended recipients were, and we know the identity of the image posted. The pose that the three individuals create is both sedate and playful, with the child perched insouciantly between the women. This stance would likely appeal to a European audience: the trope of appropriation is evident in the women’s formal, quiet posture; the child seems charming and carefree, poised to enchant the European viewer. The pose also allows the women to display the typical “Senegalese stich-resist patterns” on their indigo wrappers, that they wear around their waists. The image is closely framed, which allows the sitters to fill the picture plane; and as for their voluminous clothing, it creates a “pyramidal composition that imbues the image with a sense of gravitas.” The photographer has removed all semblance of motion, granting their statuary presence.  The figures, who will be seen by a European audience, are familiar and, as asserted, bear strong traces of European influence. At the same time, however, they are culturally mysterious and insubstantial: dressed as they are in ‘exotic’ native costumes, and with the women’s hands placed firmly on their laps in a non-European gesture, they seem somehow to exist outside the ‘real,’ urban world of the European colonizers. They are, in a sense, dreamlike: they stand in contravention to the ‘rational’ world of the European recipient who is accustomed to family photographs, but with one mother, one father, and children who have been born of that single union.  The polygamy suggested by the two wives, and the child as the son of only one of these mothers, gives the postcard a decided sense of a different world.

The Dakar—Mulatto (Senegal) [Dakar—Mulâtresse (Sénégal)], which we believe to be created by Jean Benyoumoff (Senegalese, active ca. 1907–20), suggests strong use of the trope of appropriation. The date of this card’s creation was 1900–1910, in Senegal; its dimension is 5 1/4 × 3 1/4 in. (13.3 × 8.3 cm). I especially took note of this piece, because the exhibit allowed us to see the piece filled in with color, as well as with out.  When this postcard was created, most printing was done using black and white ink, although this artist is particularly known for making two versions of his pieces. One was done in the classic black and white, and the other was tinted with color mechanically and manually added to the monochromatic image. When reading the story of this piece, I learned that the production of postcards involved a several-step process, which was undertaken by different specialists. A photographer took the picture, an editor selected the image that would be used, a printer or factory produced the actual object, and a publisher then distributed the postcard. The woman depicted here resembles a proper Victorian woman: she is restrained in her use of space and seems to be modest in nature. She sits ‘politely,’ with her hands in her lap, clutching an object. Like a virtuous Victorian woman, she projects no sexuality, but only demure politesse, through her diffident, almost non-existent smile and her rather complacent-looking expression. Only the print on her garment suggests her African culture. She has been ‘appropriated’ by the European colonizers and has, apparently, imbibed their values of feminine modesty and reserve.

The Kora Player [Joueur de Cora] was created by Louis Hostalier (Senegal) (French, active ca. 1890-1912) and A.B. & Co. in the early 20th century. The postcard was found in Senegal, and has a dimension of 5 1/4 × 3 1/4 in. (13.3 × 8.3 cm). I was at first particularly impressed with the postcard’s vignette effect, which I learned was a common marking to see on pictures and postcards of this time period and before. Photographers had to travel with their camera and a portable backdrop when traveling to see their clients. In this carefully curated mise-en-scène, a man holds a kora, stringed instrument from West Africa. Adding to his ‘exotic’ appeal to a European audience, he stands in front of a painted backdrop of a Senegalese village hidden among palm trees. His gestured walking pose reveals a sense of movement, to make us believe that he is playing the instrument while walking through his village. His pose and prop suggest that he is identified as a “griot, or historian, the guardian of noble families’ histories and lineages. The composition’s theatricality, enhanced by the presence of the backdrop, tells us more about the mythical figure of the griot than the sitter’s own identity.” The postcard exhibits the trope of insubstantiality: it depicts a griot, who, in a sense, creates dreamlike stories, and it is, itself, a dreamlike creation in its evocation of an imaginary scene in a distant, exotic space.

In photographs and postcards, artists demonstrated the effects of colonialism by creating works that were ‘skewed’ in mood or imagery, to appeal to a European audience. Whether by appropriation –showing indigenous people embracing Western appearances and behaviors, by eroticization –showing indigenous women as being desiring, desirable, and seductive, or by insubstantialization –showing ‘exotic’ people as being somehow dreamlike, unreal, and ineluctably ‘Other,’ the artists who created these works engaged in Orientalism.  In keeping with Said’s theory, the subjects in these pieces appear to be in opposition to the West: whether less advanced, more sexualized, more mysterious, or hybrids of Western and African elements, they are all ‘Other’ and therefore both appealing and slightly dangerous.

Bibliography

“In and Out of the Studio: Photographic Portraits from West Africa.” Metropolitan Museum of 

Art. 2015 http://www. metmuseum.org/exhibitions/listings/2015/in-and-out-of-the-studio.

Micheli, C. Angelo. “Doubles and Twins: A New Approach to Contemporary Studio

Photography in West Africa.” African Arts 41. 1 (2008): 66- 85. Web. Academic Search

Complete.

Said, Edward W. Orientalism. New York: Random House, 1994. Print.

Spurr, David. The Rhetoric of Empire: Colonial Discourse in Journalism, Travel Writing, and

Imperial Administration. Durham: Duke University Press, 1993. Print.