Nicole Ponsler 9.10.2008

Reflection and Commentary

RESEARCH

In reading Judith Herman’s Trauma and Recovery, I have found new insight into the effects of and psychological coping strategies associated with trauma and the individual. I was taken with the description of a hysterical patient by the name of Anna O. who termed the phenomenon of psycho-analysis the talking cure. The description of Anna O. and her contribution to modern psycho-analysis prompted me to do some further research into the woman who ultimately “found her voice and her sanity in the women’s liberation movement”.[1]

Anna, whose real name was Bertha Pappenheim, went on to be a “prominent feminist social worker, intellectual and organizer”. Bertha was able to overcome the initial by-products of trauma through talk therapy. Her long term well-being, however, seems to have been acquired through dedicating herself and her life experiences to others. Working in orphanages and with exploited children the world over, Bertha found her voice and was subsequently able to heal her childhood wounds. Herman notes that “women who discover some meaning in their experiences and who are able to transcend the limits of personal tragedy are those who find meaning by helping others and joining in social action”.1 This concept has me thinking back to the biography of Artemesia Gentileschi and how her contributions as both a female painter, as well as a social justice pioneer still resonate over 400 years later. Needless to say, the narrative of Bertha’s life has been great fodder for painting imagery for my own work (see attached sketch #1). I am beginning a 6’x4’ painting under the working title of Bertha Confronts the Snake.

In reading about the three main psychological responses to trauma; hyperarousal, intrusion and constriction, I have found similar insight into an existing painting. I am exploring visual means of representing the notion of idée fixe, whereas the traumatic incident is played over and over, continuously in the mind of the victim. This cycle plays out like a fragmented film reel, whereas memories are disjointed and repeated, rather than sequential in nature.1 I hope to articulate the significance of what’s missing in the psychological narrative of the Nori painting. Because the Nori painting illustrates the physical manifestations of combat neurosis, I am hoping to use the visual representation of dissociation, fragmentation and a “severing of events from their normal meaning”.1 (See accompanying sketch #3)

The story of Anna O. struck me as such a strong example of early feminist action and how those with the most power to help individuals experiencing trauma are those who have personal experience. Graves explains that once the trauma is expressed through talk therapy, the individual is free to express themselves through various means of creativity2. In keeping with the theme of social justice from the fall residency, I am giving thought to how artists can shape the world through positive action that has sprung from disadvantage. To quote Aeschylus, “The reward of suffering is experience”3. To me, artistic expression and intervention are the amazing bi-products of pain and suffering. Creativity and expression can be a redemptive and a powerful message of social action. In the immortal words of Marvin Gaye, “Great artists suffer for the people”3. This notion of helping others through art and experience drives the work that I do with youth and community art. Because I acknowledge art in many ways as my salvation, I seek to exemplify that possibility for others. I am reflecting on how this idea is innately understood and becomes a natural bi-product of pain for some individuals.

I am experiencing this coming together of community through art with regard to the pebble stone mosaic project. The enthusiasm of interested volunteers has been very inspirational and has allowed me to reframe my thinking about the project, its meaning and the positive bi-products of building community through art. A volunteer contacted me this week to discuss the mosaic. She explained that she had lost her husband this year and that she was looking to put some of that pain and energy into the project. Unbeknownst to her, the psm functions as the floor to a memorial plaza to commemorate those community members who are no longer with us. Similarly, in her will, Anna O. expressed her wish that “those visiting her grave leave a small stone as a quiet promise to serve the mission of women’s joy courageously”1. I am finding that particularly the female volunteers thus far have expressed a need to use the psm project in order overcome some tragedy or begin a new chapter in their lives. Perhaps what’s been most interesting is their need to convey this reason without provocation. The setting of stone is certainly repetitive and meditative in nature, allowing for one to personalize their contribution through thoughtful reflection. There is also a healing social interactive element to this project that is by nature community-building and affirming. Because of the tremendous response from female volunteers in our community, I can’t help but think about the project’s similarities to knitting circles or quilting groups.

Having worked in schools for a number of years and witnessing the clear lines that divide culture, class and ethnicity in our community, I am completely surprised that I have found the most perfect woman to act as a liaison to the reservation for all things psm related. Rose has worked as a youth services coordinator for the Pomo reservation. Per my discussion with Susan, I decided to create a position for the project that would be paid and that would allow someone to work as my assistant with an emphasis on reaching out to under served communities. Rose has been an absolute blessing. I have basically turned the phone tree over to her and I am finding that she is generating an unprecedented number of volunteers.

The artistic research I’ve been doing has focused largely on Emmanual Jal, Eva Hesse, Jay Michael Walker, Hilary Carlip, Paul “Moose” Curtis, Mierle Laderman Ukeles, Sherman Alexie, Angela Ellsworth and Francis Bacon. In these instances, I’ve been interpreting how various artists use art as means of expressing and overcoming turmoil, as well as the artist’s response to, and incorporation of, community. In the same way that Kehinde Wiley and Jay Michael Walker use ordinary people as models for their extraordinary portraits, I am interested in incorporating the everyday lives and experiences of people around me who have encountered some form of trauma4. I want to convey these life stories beyond their novelty or pathology, in a way that is new. I want this body of work to speak to the whole of trauma; the event(s), the fragmented and repetitive thoughts, as well as the eventual conquering of traumatic memory. I want my paintings to emphasize humanity, as well as the subject’s story as it relates to the universal condition of suffering. Trauma, in many ways, is the universal thread that connects all human beings. I fear that many Americans have lost sight of this notion, particularly with regard to their inability to sympathize with, care about or relate to the plight of families in Iraq, Palestine, New Orleans, Darfur, etc. Wiley and Walker insert the common person into formats that were previously associated with the economic and spiritual elite. I strive to create similar environments that narrate the plight of the common person in relation to universal suffering.

The study of artists who work in community has allowed me to begin an internal dialogue regarding what I want out of my own community-based art. In thinking about Moose Curtis and the environmental imagery associated with his power wash murals, I began to reflect on the symbolism of the stones used in the mosaic.5 Because both the stones and the tradition of psm are ancient, those of us creating it are compelled to reflect on our connection to the earth as well as our role as creators in a permanent creation of public art.

ARTWORK

After meeting with relevant parties and poring over The Complete Pebble Stone Mosaic Handbook by Maggie Howarth, I have made some alterations to the original mosaic sketch. Whereas this project began as a two-person endeavor, I have decided to enlist as many community members as possible to contribute across a broad range of activities. The response has been amazing! I have shifted gears to be more of a coordinator than lead artist which is stretching my abilities at organization, administration and effective communication. The sketch itself is pretty straight forward (see attached sketch #3). It reflects the colors of rocks that are available in our environment as well as the precision that is achievable with said media. The historic and aesthetic references are two-fold. The compass rose is based off of a Celtic icon and the waves are inspired by Hokusai. The more time I spend preparing for this project, the more aware I’ve become of the meditative nature of stone setting, as well as the reference to mandala construction and composition (obviously not in its permanency). Pebblestone mosaic probably originated during Greco-Roman times, although the style became popular again during the Italian Renaissance.6

Lastly, the sketches that I have prepared for paintings originate from my interest in the intersection of art and trauma. Sketch #1, or Bertha Confronts the Snake is a fairly straight forward narrative regarding one of the epiphenous moments that Anna O. encountered during her therapy. The hands and string are meant to evoke tension, as well as a reference to hypnosis. The multiple panels are an attempt to capture the disjointed memory associated with Bertha’s trauma. In sketch #2 (Nori painting) I am attempting to narrate the sequence of events that lead to the main character’s overcoming events
associated with WWII. I am trying to articulate the chaos of dissociative thought patterns amidst a list of visual cues that I found so colorful upon first hearing the story.

It is very difficult for me to delineate the historic and aesthetic references in my work because I feel that almost every artist I look at has an affect on the imagery and/or the
methods I use. If I had to, I might say Julie Speed, David Salle, and Jay Michael Walker. In terms of their political reference, I am interested in articulating a presence of feminism, victimization/empowerment as well as the notion of how the power of memory serves us both to a positive degree as well as to our detriment.

1 HERMAN, JUDITH. Trauma and Recovery: The Aftermath of Violence – from Domestic Abuse to Political Terror. Basic Books, 1997.

2 GRAVES, PIRKKO LAUSLAHTI. Life Event and Art. The International Review of Psycho-Analysis, 11:355-365, 1984.

3 “The Painter’s Keys”. Suffering Art Quotes. Gaye, Marvin. http://quote.robertgenn.com/getquotes.php?catid=296.

4 WALKER, JAY MICHAEL. All the Saints of the City of Angels. Heyday Books, 2008.

5 YouTube. “San Francisco Power Wash Muralist”. Curtis, Paul. http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=SanFrancisco+muralist+powerwash&search_type=&aq=f.

6 HOWARTH, MAGGIE. The Complete Pebble Stone Mosaic Handbook. Firefly Books, 2003.