Artdolls
The four Artdolls represent the four major artist stereotypes: bohemian, crazy, philosopher and savvy businessman. They are all men because, stereotypically, artists are seen as male. In our society (and this is not only true to Canada), I have found that artists are sometimes misunderstood and undervalued. Children in elementary school are already being taught that art is for fun while science and math are for serious people who are serious about their futures and want good jobs. This piece is a satire of the artist stereotypes, and a way to make artists into consumer objects for the masses. The question I ask myself is how are artists so undervalued when their work has such immense value? Here, by creating products out of the artist's image, the artist himself is valued. But there's a catch: it is the stereotyped artist that has become popular in our society. I believe that our view on art and artists should change. The arts are important and we should be learning about their history and impact on our world. After all, the arts are linked directly to history, technology and culture, which are learned about at school in a 'serious' manner. I agree that art is a fun subject for young students. It should be a class where one enjoys oneself through creativity, but at the same time I believe that students must learn to value art in the same way their parents and teachers tell them to value science, math and language courses. This can only be done if we change the way artists are viewed in society (in general, not always) and we start seeing them as important members of our communities. This piece is effective because it allows the viewers to think about art history and where these stereotypes are from. When presented to a group of people, they immediately began trying to figure out who the dolls represented and then started discussing art history, as well as why stereotypes like these have prevailed. I am interested in the discussion this piece could create throughout Canada and if it could, in any way, inspire some to learn more about or discuss art, then I have done my job.