Jenny Watson
1951 - Luxury 1992- diptych: oil, pigments, sequins & paper on primed Belgian linen
Watson's work has attracted a great deal of attention since her inclusion in the 1982 Sydney Bienniale and subsequently the Venice Bienniale in 1993. A major retrospective of her work was held at the Museum of Contemporary Art, Sydney in 2017.
Watson's work is a personal response to the issues raised by feminism and the practice of art in a contemporary, yet historically referenced, climate. Luxury is a strong work which deals with the artist's feminist concerns: the woman on horseback can be read as Eve in a private Garden of Eden - neither Adam nor the serpent are present. The position of the figure with her back to the viewing plane and the "No Parking" sign reinforce the private zone which has been created.
Luxury, therefore, is seen as both privacy and autonomy.
© Jenny Watson