Gladiator

Courtesy the de Young: "Deborah Oropallo (b. 1954) deconstructs and enhances images to investigate the seduction and power that is evoked by gesture and pose. Oropallo layers images of contemporary women in provocative costumes, borrowed from the Internet, with images of men from 17th- and 18th-century portrait paintings, including several from the collection of the Fine Arts Museums. These traditional portraits were often contrived to convey not merely a likeness of the sitter, but also a sense of his importance and authority. Attributes such as nobility and dignity were portrayed through stance, gesture, and attire, and portraits often involved elaborate costumes and props. Through this re-employment of the vast symbolism of classic portraiture, Oropallo raises issues about gender, costume, fantasy, potency, power, and hierarchy."

Published by G16 Editions, 2009.