JULIAN OPIE, THIS IS SHAHNOZA IN 3 PARTS 7, THIS IS SHAHNOZA IN 3 PARTS SERIES, SIGNED MIXED MEDIA PRINT, EDITION OF 30, 2008
This Is Shahnoza In 3 Parts 7 is a print from Julian Opie’s This Is Shahnoza In 3 Parts series (2005) that shows a nude image of a pole dancer called Shahnoza who the artist met in Soho, London. This work is indicative of Opie’s desire to work with one idea across a number of different media and compositions, this particular print shown to be divided into three panels that follow the figure’s form, each differing in size.
Opie depicts the human form in a highly stylised manner showing the model’s head as a blank circle, without a neck and her feet cut off, showing only straps for shoes. Despite the figure’s abstracted form, her pose is decidedly realistic, no doubt due to Opie’s use of photography in the initial stages of creating the print. Opie’s images of people engage with longstanding ideas that have characterised art history by questioning what intrinsic elements are needed to convey a narrative or person’s character. However, Opie turns this tradition in art history by explicitly citing the model as a professional pole dancer.
This print is produced through the use of the flocking technique, a process of adhering fine textile fibres to a surface, is indicative of his desire to engage with art historical techniques to create decidedly modern images. Historically, flocking is associated with wall coverings that were popular during the reign of Louis XIV of France.
Read more about This is Shahnoza.
ABOUT JULIAN OPIE
British artist Julian Opie challenges traditional approaches to portraiture through his digitally designed and seemingly contradictory, depersonalised works. Working also with landscapes and cityscapes, Opie’s highly stylised work involves the reduction of photographs or short films into figurative reproductions created using computer software. The hallmarks of his artistic style are portraits and animated walking figures, rendered with minimal detail in black line drawing. Learn more about Julian Opie.
