By Pamela Wong
A man and a woman are sprawled on a couch while another man enters the room carrying two glasses of wine.
This is the scene depicted in “Hands Off (don’t be hatin’), a photograph by Montreal-based artist Dawit Petros as part of his new exhibition, Transliteration.
To the trained artistic eye, it may be apparent that the photograph is based on Manet’s “Olympia” and Cézanne’s “Afternoon in Naples.”
One noticeable difference from the originals is that all his subjects are black.
But Petros is not trying to duplicate famous paintings in photographic form—he’s critiquing art history itself.
“It’s not just about reinterpretation. It’s breaking down an academic bias towards notions of great art,” says Petros, referring to ideas shared by some members of the artistic community as what qualifies as art. “It challenges notions of what’s worthy of representation.”
“It’s about taking what’s familiar and presenting it in an alternate way so that viewers are encouraged to look at what’s familiar in a work—whether it’s the type of images or the subjects depicted—in a different way.”
But a viewer can appreciate the works whether they recognize the references or not because there are many issues within the photos themselves that warrant discussion, says Jessie Lacayo, curator of Gallery 101.
“When I first came across the work, I immediately thought it was very fresh, very new,” says Lacayo. “There are not many artists presenting direct images of strong, bold, black people.”
David Folk, who works at Gallery 101, was also struck by the concept of this exhibition. “It calls into question the legitimacy of the original masterpieces,” he says.
“Why do we place such importance on these works done by white European males? Is art any less valuable if it’s produced by other cultures?”
Petros says race is a significant element in his photos, but he warns against interpreting the photos solely along racial lines.
By changing the characters in “Hands Off” from the original Caucasian man and woman lying down nude and the black maid who is carrying a serving tray in Cézanne’s painting, Petros is also raising questions about power relations, gender, and sexuality, he says.
“‘Olympia’ and ‘Afternoon in Naples’ are about servitude and power relations between maid and master,” he says.
“In my interpretation, the notion of servitude disappears and there’s a new dynamic between the man and the woman on the couch and the man walking into the scene. Is he intruding into the scene? Is he coming for the woman? Or for the man?”
Amy Jenkins, who visited the exhibition, says she finds the concept interesting but felt the works were slightly left unresolved.
“I appreciate that it leaves you with questions and the issues raised are important, but there may be too much left up to the audience to interpret,” she says.
Petros admits his thought-provoking work may leave viewers with many questions but he’s not trying to provide the answers. “There is no single dominant theme in the work. None of my images offer solutions to problems of race, etc. It’s a reflection of certain issues that are drawn from my experiences.”
The lingering ambiguity invites open interpretation, says Petros.
The exhibition can be appreciated by anyone, regardless of any prior artistic knowledge, he says.
“People who bring in a different set of experiences are going to interpret what’s in front of them differently,” he says. “There are different ways of understanding it, different layers of discussion.”
Petros hopes to bring Transliteration to Western Canada in the near future, but he also says the exhibition is not complete.
He plans to apply the same concept of critique to paintings from North America and elsewhere.
Transliteration is on exhibit at Gallery 101 until February 21.