Too Much! Essay Final

Jonah Dunstan

Prof. Doris Cacoilo

Activists, Interlopers, and Pranksters 

10/13/2021

Stitched for Pleasure 

The purpose of NJCU’s latest show “Too Much!” is to highlight humanity’s relationship to consumerism and things in an industrialized globalized world. Each of the several artists tackled the topic in their own unique way. Vandana Jain’s pieces primarily tackled the disparity of conditions between workers and corporations. Robert Lach tackled the ecological impact that we inflict with our consumerism. The series in the gallery that really captured me was Mollie Thonesonn’s “Piece of Meat” series.  A series of collage pieces made from thrifted lingerie sewn together and hung upon rusty meat hooks. Piece of Meat tackles consumerism and how it relates to abusive relationships. With almost everything in capitalist society being commoditized it is no surprise that one of the most central, and innate parts of human existence; sexuality, is monetized and sold. While sex work is nothing new, being documented all throughout history, in many different cultures; there is an interesting shift when women gain more rights, the market adapts to exploit that liberation for it’s own benefit. In a patriarchal society that places a woman's worth almost exclusively on if she was aesthetically pleasing or not, it is obvious that manufacturers will take advantage. 

One of the most interesting aspects of these pieces are the hooks. The juxtaposition between the bright color palettes and silky texture of the lingerie and rusty meat hooks describe a relationship of industry and livestock. The post modern patriarchal view of femininity being represented as the lingerie collages are being hung upon and presented by the age-old established norm of the rusty meat hooks. Bell Hooks writes “Before women's liberation all females young and old were socialized by sexist thinking to believe that our value rested solely on appearance and whether or not we were perceived to be good looking, especially by men.” (Hooks .31). Interestingly enough this element of the collection reminded me of ‘The Texas Chainsaw Massacre’. Horror which is viewed from the outset as exploitative, and cruel especially towards women is ironically the most feminist's genre. A common trope of horror movies, specifically slashers, is the last girl trope, in which the last surviving character (usually a girl) gets their chance to finally escape and/or from the psychopathic (usually male) killer. In a world in which women are victimized emotionally, mentally, and physically; horror movies give spotlight to the real terrors being born into a patriarchal world provides to the gender that deem less worthy. I think of Thonneson’s work in the same vein. 

Tobe Hooper, Texas Chainsaw Massacre, 1974

The main material used in the works is lingerie in all sorts of differing styles and colors. Best described in the press release of The Museum of FIT’s ‘Exposed: A Lingerie Story’ “ As the final barrier to the nude body, lingerie is simultaneously modest and erotic, and it remains a subject of enduring fascination. The design of lingerie enhances its allure: it strategically reveals, conceals, and highlights the wearers form. As French lingerie designer Chantal Thomass observed, ``The essence and attitude of lingerie is all in suggestion.“.  While it can be viewed as it’s initial purpose of appealing to the male gaze it was undeniably a huge step forward from the corset which would cause women to faint, and even worse constrict so much that the rib cage would begin to narrow permanently. Another thing that is very much tied to womanhood, although not nearly as discussed is fiber art. Textiles, quilts, crochet are all closely tied to the domestic work of women. While not historically new, fiber art has been seen traditionally in many cultures as mere functional objects viewed as lesser compared to not only fine art but also other functional pieces created by their male counterparts. Serbian artist  Ksenija Pantelić writes how Judy Chicago had successfully reintroduced fiber art into the fine art space.  “This was a major step forward. Redefining the history of art subjects and themes, feminist artists used the medium to subvert its history as ‘women work’ and transform it into colorful, fun, and sexually liberated works” Pantelic writes. Piece of Meat implements lingerie into these works effectively. Nowhere is this more effective than in the piece ‘Just Close Your Eyes’. The contrast of the flowery and playful designs of the pastel colored lingerie that makes up the base contrasts heavily with the disturbingly small panties sewn on the front. 

Judy Chicago, Smocked Figure and details, 1984

Mollie Thonneson, Just Close your Eyes, 2021 

Although Piece of Meat serves as a harrowing reminder of the abusive relationship women have with our society, a society that puts over a third of them through domestic or sexual violence due soley to their gender; there is reason to have some hope for the future. The MeToo movement has sparked a fire under the asses of abusers in positions of power, which has dominoed to many more speaking up about their experiences of mistreatment. However there is much more work to be done as we live in a system that views 49.8 percent of the population as lesser. We must push further. 

Cited Works

Hooks, Bell. (2015). Beauty Within and Without. Feminism Is for Everybody: Passionate politics. essay, Routledge. 

 Pantelić, K. (2016, December 23). Fiber Art and its scope. Widewalls. Retrieved October 13, 2021, from https://www.widewalls.ch/magazine/fiber-art. 

Exposed: A history of lingerie. Exposed: A History of Lingerie | Fashion Institute of Technology. (n.d.). Retrieved October 13, 2021, from https://www.fitnyc.edu/museum/exhibitions/exposed-history-of-lingerie.php.