Succession

Exhibition by Jesse Mockrin

As much as I enjoy museums, I don't connect personally to every piece I see. However, I felt really intimate with the feminine paintings in Succession by Jesse Mockrin when I visited last Saturday with a couple of my friends. Her paintings are obviously beautiful and meticulously executed, but moreover were closely observant to the trends and cycles of female roles in art history and offered great insight into my explorations in the subject area.

In midstream, Mockrin (2017), Oil on cotton/linen, 74 in. x 102 in.

In the exhibition, Mockrin's painting In Mid-Stream (2017) reveals the paradoxes in the rape of women.

The style and subject matter are immediately reminiscent of The Rape of Europa, while the composition creates a violent stream of motion that is offset by jarring black void. The negative space constructs and incomplete scene that extends a sense of bewilderment and disconnectivity as viewers see only the victim of the rape but not the aggressor, who is concealed from sight save an arm that clenches around the young woman. Though out of sight, the predator is not absent---the thick, looming darkness and the turned gaze of the Europa---whose body orientation follows her rapist---suggest that another entity is present in the scene. By bringing attention to his absence, the painting ironically illuminates the role of the aggressor. A similar irony is a play when the crimes of aggressor in sexual assaults and felonies is commonly overlooked or excused. While these individuals fade into the darkness, the spotlight focuses on the victim, as scrutiny, condemnation, and blame quickly corrode the ivory pedestal of female chastity.

Caught fire and fury, Mockrin (2019) Oil on Cotton, Overall 71 in. x 98 in.

A similar approach is observed in Mockrin's 2019 adaptation of The Death of Lucretia by Ludovico Mazzanti (1730).

Kissing Contest, 1648, Mockrin (2022), Oil on Cotton, 52 x 36 in.

In Kissing Contest, Mockrin reimagines the painting Amarillis crowning Mirtillo (1648) by artist Jacob Van Loo. The original painting depicts a scene in Giovanni Battista Guarini's play Il Pastor Fido, where the protagonist, Mirtillo, cross-dresses in women's clothing in order to participate in a "kissing contest" judged by his lover, Amarillis. The only indicator of Mirtillo's gender is the men's boot that peeks out from under his dress, revealing his intentions while admitting to the act's heterosexuality.

In Mockrin 's adaptation, however, the boot does not appear under Mirtillo's dress. By removing the token of heterosexuality, Mockrin clouds the nature of the act and invites new interpretations of the lovers' relationship dynamic.

Bloom, Mockrin (2015), Oil on cotton/linen, 43 in. x 62 in.

I was a bit puzzled by the exhibitionist's analysis of Mockrin's Bloom, claiming that the painting is making a statement about feminism through its portrayal of lush femininity. I hardly observe any display of female individuality or agency in the painting. One can hardly argue that the juxtaposition between the real rose and the fake adornments may be the female struggle against being labelled superficial embellishments. It does, however, deserve to be commended for the intricate execution of fabric detail and cohesive use of colour.

Throughout her paintings, Mockrin employs Renaissance-esque rendering techniques, however, her subject matter range from those in Baroque, Neoclassical, and in this case, Rococo period paintings.

In mid-word, Mockrin (2017), Oil on cotton/linen, Each 36 in. x 52 in, Overall 52 in. x 72 in.

Mockrin's "incomplete" composition is an outstanding feature in all her paintings. Her deliberate removal of subjects and employment of black spaces points to the discrepancies between reality and human comprehension. Many subjects appear without faces and lack individual identities. Ironically, these women may still be identified based on their clothing and body language. In a broader context, they are defined by conventionalities and impressions, more often than not understood based on their roles in history, often relative to that of a male protagonist.

Weep into my eyes, Mockrin (2019), Oil on cotton, Overall 52 in. x 72 in.

By alluding to various classics , Mockrin depicts Art History's objectification of these women, who continue exist without an autonomous identity. Moreover, she illuminates the intense emotions of her subjects---more specifically, the anguish, grief, and fear of female figures in historical epics.

The touch of a stranger hand, Mockrin (2019), Oil on cotton, 40 1/2 in. x 28 in.

In response to Mockrin's work, I executed an oil painting adapted from the Birth of Venus. Similarly, I removed the faces of Venus and other female subjects. As it appears to the male gaze, these women seem no more than a writhing hunk of flesh.

Jenny Zou

May 2023