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Self-Portrait
Louise Bourgeois, 1911-2010
Louise Bourgeois's etched self-portrait expresses personal identity in terms that transcend the self. Basing her composition on a 1940 drawing, Bourgeois explains: "The strong figure on the right is the father, and the softer figure on the left is the mother. And there, in between, this creature appears. It is simply a self-portrait." Although Bourgeois's work often reflects the emotional toll of her childhood-which was characterized by extreme tension between her parents-this familial group generates a sense of well-being: "[My parents] seem to endorse me, for better or for worse." While acknowledging the work's autobiographical roots, Bourgeois enhanced its symbolic associations in transforming it into a print, observing: "You don't know if the little figure is a boy or a girl, but it is a little god, regardless." Signifying the power of love and acceptance to channel force productively, Bourgeois's self-portrait functions as a metaphor for creation itself.
1994 |