Some will get offended and others will relish the controversy, but one of the most important local art events of this year starts Friday night in the Paseo District at the AKA Gallery, an event that has drawn advanced national and local media coverage.
On Friday, Marilyn Artus, an Oklahoma City artist, will unveil nine pieces she has titled "Our Lady of the Anti-Personnel Weapon and her Stepford Friends." The pieces, which are collages, depict the Virgin Mary holding weapons. Artus said, "The expectation to be pure is part of what I'm exploring. These pieces express so many of my thoughts on religion and on the complexities of being a woman."
The juxtaposition of the Virgin Mary with weapons can on one level serve as morality tale about how much religion and violence have been intertwined through history. Yet the pieces, which include detailed embroidery, can also be seen as more complicated statements against patriarchal hegemony and the objectification of women. For example, the collages contain vintage advertisements that Artus said "show how some of the things that we as women were - and still are - told to buy if we want to have a good life or keep a man; this bra, that book, this lingerie, that product."
Some of the press coverage over the art has been focused on the contrast between the controversial essence of the art-obviously, some faithful might get offended over Mary's display of her Second Amendment rights-and the fact the art was created and shown in the Bible Belt. Fox 25 has covered the show as well as Univision in Los Angeles. The Oklahoma Gazette also published an article on the show.
The pieces will be on display through June 27. The opening reception is from 6 to 10 p.m. on Friday, June 4. The AKA Gallery is located at 3001 Paseo, Oklahoma City.
Artus continues to enrich the local art community here with provocative work and projects. She's one of the founders of The Girlie Show, an annual event that features the art of local women artists. Each year, the show awards a scholarship to one of the artists.
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