Dolls Feminine

In the installation Dolls Feminine Susanne Hangaard portrays five famous women as porcelain dolls in 1:2. Like the traditional porcelain dolls they have flexible joints for them to gesticulate and be placed in different poses. They are all made in gray-greenish colored porcelain and dressed in individually designed costumes in matching green silk. Each doll is provided with an abstract object like the object of a saint – telling about the person they are associated with.

Where dolls traditionally are anonymized Hangaard´s dolls represent specific western world women: the catholic nun Mother Teresa (1910-1997), the former Icelandic President Vigdís Finnbogadóttir (1930), the American first ladies Michelle Obama (1967) and Melania Trump (1970) and the sculptor Camille Claudel (1864-1943). All women whom have had more or less power and influence on the opinion formation in a world traditionally shaped and ruled by men.

With Dolls Feminine Hangaard touches central issues in relation to gender, body, identity and power. Issues where the fronts are often very firm Hangaard insists on a nuanced portrayal of the five women.

Exhibition text: Clay Museum of Ceramic Art Denmark

Photographer: Dorte Krogh