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A simple phrase is all Sarah Lathrop-Midkiff needs to show how social interaction shapes society.
“Tongue Ties and Proverbial Spit,” Lathrop-Midkiff’s exhibit showcasing her Master’s in Fine Arts work, is scheduled to open today in the University Museum and run until Monday with a reception Friday from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m.
The exhibit is meant to challenge ideas about gender norms and cultural expectations within our patriarchal society, she said.
The exhibit is an installation of photographs, drawing, text and an animation.
“The text is all based on cliché phrases, proverbs and other cultural sayings and then I altered them,” she said.
Lathrop-Midkiff, a graduate student from Warrenton, Va., said she altered the text of well-known phrases to show the cultural biases they have.
“There is one image and text combo based on a Spanish proverb, it is: Flowers who stay in their pots will never leave the porch,” she said.
She paired that proverb with an image of a pair of legs standing in a pot, one shows a skirt in motion and the other is skirt motionless, she said.
“If you would apply that to people that proverb could translate to mean people who don’t grow outside of their designated spaces do not advance out of their comfort zone,” she said.
“It is a pretty broad spectrum of images, but it’s all black and white, because of the nature of the phrases,” she said.
She said a lot of the phrases are meant to make us more aware of the things we say and do in social interactions.
“When people dismiss children acting out, especially boys, the phrase ‘Boys will be boys’ is thrown out there,” she said.
She said the phrase is dismissive and she wants to challenge that sort of social interaction, where we are teaching or informing each other about our roles in society.
The images are paired with the phrases they try to deconstruct, she said.
“I think it really transcends modern photography into something more post modern,” said Nate Steinbrink, curator of events for the museum.
He said that she is taking the (museum) space and transforming it with her photos and text.
“She utilized lettering that actually goes on the walls so that makes it more of a cohesive installation because it is taking over the whole wall,” he said.
He said there is a variety of some interesting collage work.
“It is almost like there are several series of work within the show,” he said.
He said the museum tries to provide the space to as many MFAs as possible each year.
Dona Bachman, the museum’s director, said featuring an exhibit depends on the availability and the kind of exhibit.
“It depends on the kind of exhibit their having, because some things might work better at the Glove than here,” she said.
Lathrop-Midkiff said she wants the audience to go away with the feeling that they are actively participating with the construction of their reality, and something as small as social interaction can make a big difference.
“Simply exchanging a proverb, it is an opportunity or action that we have in our world,” she said.
McGregor can be reached at 536-3311 ext. 275
