"Gender Scrambling 769: Stein, Romney, Obama, Hardacre"
Archival pigment print on paper, 2012
Gift of Donna L. Brazile, © Linda Stein
The Art Collection has received an exciting donation of 26 fine art prints by the New York based artist Linda Stein from Donna L. Brazile, former Chair of the Democratic National Committee and Adjunct Lecturer in the Women's and Gender Studies Program at Georgetown. Stein is a feminist artist, activist and educator whose goal is to create gender oriented art to “inspire Upstander behavior for peace, equality and diversity.” The donation encompasses a 2012 suite of prints entitled Gender Scrambling, that evolved from her sculptural series such as Fluidity of Gender (2009), Body Swapping (2010) and others.
Stein’s experience as a 9/11 survivor had a profound influence on her work. The bravery of the first responders drew her away from abstract work towards figural imagery reflecting heroism, protection and survival. Thus figures in her work sometimes wear armor or display the physique of a bodybuilder and her backgrounds may reveal glimpses of the Twin Towers. The photographic montages create a compelling fragmentation of form, environment and identity through contrasts in perceptions of gender-based roles and expression.
In Gender Scrambling, Stein explores themes of gender fluidity and stereotypes involving body imagery by juxtaposing figures in crossed-gender clothing. The prints are populated by icons from the world of Pop Culture and politics; feminist leaders such as Margaret Sanger, Bella Abzug and Gloria Steinem; and the artist’s friends and contemporaries. Odd subject combinations, such as Barack Obama and Mitt Romney, interact against digitally composed backdrops, some featuring urban or rural components or a nonspecific monocolor background. Throughout the series, the presence of Stein’s sculptural torsos play with notions of gender, idealized body type and androgyny.
In 1972 Stein founded the non-profit art organization Have Art: Will Travel! ( HAWT!), to address awareness of alternative gender identity and promote social justice through outreach, educational events and traveling exhibitions. To learn more about Stein and her work, please visit her website.
The Booth Family Center for Special Collections is most grateful for Brazile’s generous donation which will be used in teaching, research and exhibitions, and to HAWT! for making it possible. The suite of 26 Gender Scrambling prints is available for in-person viewing and class visits to Booth.
Please reach out to speccoll@georgetown.edu for more information or to request an appointment.
-LuLen Walker