“Self-identification”
In 1980 in Warsaw, Poland Ewa Partum, a polish artist hosted her first exhibition titled Self identification. She was one of the first polish artists who took interests in the concept of feminism.
Partum took pictures of the main streets of Warsaw, which perfectly portrayed Warsaw at that time – dark, melancholic and overwhelming. She used those pictures as a base to her photo-collage series where she then incorporated her naked body.
Partum showed up naked to the exhibition and then read out loud her speech titled “Self-identyfication”. She then announced, that from this exhibition onwards, she will perform completely naked, and she will continue doing so to the moment female artists will be treated equally as male artists.
The PRL’s existence was generally a hard period for all Polish artist, from all different areas and branches of art. It was all due to the government imposed censorship that blocked from the public all art considered to be incompatible with the guidelines of that times.
Back then the importance of women in the society dramatically decreased therefore becoming a well known respected female artist during the PRL era in Poland was almost impossible.
Partum’s performance during the exhibition, was not only an act of objection towards women’s position in the society. Female nudity was back then also associated with humiliation so it could be said that Patrum specially humiliated herself in order to uncover the naked truth of the role of women in a society dominated by men.
Her artwork was groundbreaking. She managed to inspire many female artists to step out and start using a combination of art and femininity as a medium to fight for recognition and equality.
