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| deadofwinter I(d) space, february 7, 2003: using the time-tested method of the exquisite corpse, m2m surveys the collective unconscious |
 | Players: Painter/Scavenger/Artist Julie: Formally, this drawing has great negative space and a dynamic composition. The butterfly reference really opens up new doors for post-gender identity politics. Kristen: I'm struck by the pocket-protector. Like all of us, this soul dreams of emerging from its cubicle-bound chrysalis, and fulfilling its destiny to star in a drag version of Les sylphides. |
 | Players: Photo artist/Composer/Artist Kristen: Ah, an homage to Imelda Marcos. A reminder that absolute power corrupts absolutely--and clutters your karmic closet. Julie: To tap or to fly seems to be the central debate in this work. It is a poetic cry for grace and escape from one trapped in a jointless, crotchless universe. Kristen: Clearly this figure has a choice to make--between good and evil, spirit and flesh. This ain't Payless, lady: you can't buy one and get the other for free. |
 | Players: 10-year-old/Businesswoman/Teacher Julie: Bewitching--the Virgin of Guadalupe as conceived by Dr. Seuss. I love the sheer whimsy of this picture. Kristen: Actually, it reminds me of Milton's description of Sin in Paradise Lost. Julie: Hmm. Obviously, our critiques are grounded in very different notions of Christian iconography and the western literary canon...showoff! |
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Players: Frustrated worker/Teacher/Teacher Kristen: The Dubya likeness is uncanny--except, of course, for the sign. The cat completes this serendipitous portrait of the American "nucular" family. Julie: And, I might add, the lyrical handling of line is downright seductifying! |
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Players: No idea Kristen: "We come in peace!" Note the balloons; they're a bouquet of the heart's desires--peace, love, happiness, and apparently, a cinnamon roll. Julie: Combining the low-budget look of B-movie horror films with sappy-sweet Hallmark romanticism is a risky and confrontational move in today's emotionally cool art climate. Kristen: Although, suspiciously, this creature holds its gifts behind its back. I bet its fingers are crossed. |
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Players: Another mystery Kristen: I think this is genius. What are those three little words, if not the offering of one's head on a stick? Julie: I find this work truly horrifying. I don't love you back, freako! Kristen: I must say I'm surprised by your patriarchal response, Julie. But I suppose one person's heartfelt declaration is another person's morning-after panic attack. |
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Players: Free spirit/Artist/Shoe salesman Kristen: You're a gastrointestinal mess, Charlie Brown! Julie: I must challenge your flippant interpretation of this work, Kristen. I feel this drawing seeks to flush out some complex and compelling thoughts on the relationship between abjection and calligraphy. Can you not see this as a brilliant distillation of the central questions of aesthetics? Kristen: Honestly, I never understand you when you start talking theory. |
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Players: 3-1/2-year-old/12-year-old/9-year-old Julie: Insert Freudian analysis--and years of future therapy--here. Kristen: Out of the pens of babes comes...Guernica. |