Delicate Drudgery
By Danielle O’Steen
Tonkonow Artworks + Projects, open up a world full of isolation and busywork, where the main characters are women, beasts or a mixture of both, all thrown into a senseless line of duty and mostly carrying the artist’s own face. The mythical nature of her figures is only furthered by their questionable actions. Most of their activities are completely absurd, from sewing together full-grown tigers in Tiger Mending (2003), to carrying horses in saddles as if in an upside-down world, in Saddlebacked (2002). Combining the familiarity of housework with the unending drudgery of a sweatshop, the scenes depict a host of backbreaking work that resonates in the figures’ every move and expression. Other paintings display the odd characters more casually: motionless and surrounded by stark white space. Progeny (2003) is a prime example where two women are found greeting each other. However, upon close inspection, it appears that they have infants dangling from their open mouths, as if sporting science fiction accessories.
By draping the activity in a blank white setting throughout most of her works, Cutler suspends the characters and their actions in free space, and directs focus to the intricate details and elaborate costumes. As a mixture of eras and cultures, the clothing can range from the dress of a frumpy housewife to the garb of ancient royalty, with one aspect in common: a highly patterned surface. The delicate treatment of these figures mimics the tradition of Indian miniature paintings, but on a much larger scale with some works reaching five feet in length.
Beyond the magical workshops, some works are grounded in historical references to create a more solid storyline. Preceding (2004) shows a group of migrating woman lugging fully dressed snowmen on wooden sleds as if they are fleeing immigrants with no other possessions. Meanwhile, Waders (2003) depicts women in army green, with rubber tubes for hips, shimmying down a gap in a forest floor toward invisible waters, perhaps mocking organized military units. Siege (2004) exhibits an absurd chase where figures are fleeing from arrows and tumbling through the empty space of the work, possibly in reference to the recent hunt and capture of Saddam Hussein.
What remains intriguing throughout the topsy-turvy world of Amy Cutler is that among the absurd activities and character oddities, much is left to the imagination of the viewer in the deafening silence of the paintings. Army of Me (2003) radiates this silence, with Cutler herself as the initial thought. A large self-portrait is situated center stage, and is looking out, very uncomfortably, at a sea of miniature self-portraits, who are waiting in attention and dressed in a multitude of costumes. In addition to showing off Cutler’s talented use of patterning, this painting also sets itself as the most disturbing work to view because the characters radiate significant familiarity, emerging from some bizarre nightmare. From laborers caught in the gig from hell to housewives inventing a new way to carry their infants, Cutler succeeds in leaving an unsettling feeling in the viewer’s stomachs. How these characters found their way into these scenes or what they will do next remains unclear, leaving all questions open to the imagination.
