Guys 'n' dolls

An exhibition exploring the sexualisation of childhood featuring Cathy Watkins and Daniel Barnard from 10th - 21st February 2010 at The Redchurch Gallery, Redchurch Street, London E2 7DP.

Subverting gender stereotypes

Linked initially by a mutual fascination with dolls, Cathy Watkins and Daniel Barnard explore the sexualisation of childhood and beyond through a series of 2D and 3D deconstructions featuring Barbie and some of her less celebrated imitators.

Taking centre stage, the fifty year old Barbie faces close scrutiny in a series of anatomical studies by Cathy Watkins. Unable to stand unaided or sit without widely splayed legs, Barbie is pictured in her most frequently adopted posture, a blancing act on all fours with arse up ended. Issues concerning the representation and sexualisation of women in popular culture are developed further in a series of drawings populated by images from the tabloid press and children's colouring books.

'Madonna and child' (mixed media on canvas) develops the theme of consumerism and innocence lost throug a terrifying portrayal of Madonna (the super star) eating a pizza under the watchful gaze of a small girl in high heels. Capturing a moment of pre-language enquiry, the painting 'Navigator' (household emulsion on canvas) features a one year old girl dangling another product in the Mattel range namely 'Ken', blissfully unaware of the symbolic potency of this highly articulated (and very orange) object.

Daniel Barnard,no stranger to Barbie ownership as a child (he bought one as a girl friend for his action man) incorperates dolls as essential components in the construction of his sculptures and assemblages. Displaying a rigerous attention to the subversion of gender stereotypes his personal narratives are layered with multitudinous cultural re-evaluations.

Made at the time of Jade Goody's death - when the tabloids were saturated with the striking contours of her post chemo hair loss - Barnard's 'Burnt out' series feature a selection of doll's heads plucked bald and implanted with dreadlock-like spent matches. Beautifully crafted and formally complex, the tension between the fragility of the charred matchsticks and the rubbery-ness of the dolls cheeks create a powerful sense of material impermanence.

The series of collages forming 'A day out in the sun' subvert the iconic Janet and John childrens books through the insertion of images of 50's glamour girls and examples of contemporary art. Works by Gilbert and George, Lucien Freud and Richard Hamilton provide alternative back drops for activities such as playing ball, eating apples and picking flowers. The learning accented text is alltered to reflect the awkward awakenings of pubescent conciousness.

Mutually exclusive yet conjoined by a shared concern for the increasing (and largely unchallenged) sexualisation of society, Cathy Watkins and Daniel Barnard regale the viewer with their regressive revelry. States of comfort enjoyed in the company of children's favourites are however short lived, the pull of nostalgia failing to stem the sickly tide of consumer driven human commodification and undercurrents of a dangerously sexually exploitative nature.

Exhibition dates: 10th- 21st February 2010

Opening hours: Tuesday- Sunday 10-6pm

Redchurch Gallery, 50 Redchurch Street, London E2 7DP.

For further information contact: 

cathywatkins@hotmail.co.uk