Francesca Woodman Galerie Marian Goodman 79 Rue du Temple, 75003 Paris
08/09/2017 - 07/10/2017
Francesca Woodman April 3, 1958 – January 19, 1981
Francesca Stern Woodman was an American photographer best known for her black and white pictures featuring either herself or female models. Many of her photographs show women, naked or clothed, blurred (due to movement and long exposure times), merging with their surroundings, or whose faces are obscured. Her work continues to be the subject of much critical acclaim and attention, years after she died by suicide at the age of 22, in 1981.Woodman was born in Denver, to artists George Woodman and Betty Woodman.
“I was inventing a Language for people to see…”
Woodman attended public school in Boulder, between 1963 and 1971, except for second grade, which she attended in Italy,where the family spent many summers between school years. She began high school in 1972 at Abbot Academy, a private Massachusetts boarding school. There, she began to develop her photographic skills and became interested in the art form. Abbot Academy merged with Phillips Academy in 1973; Woodman graduated from the public Boulder High School in 1975. Through 1975, she spent summers with her family in Italy in the Florentine countryside, where the family lived on an old farm.
Beginning in 1975, Woodman attended the Rhode Island
Some of these videos were displayed at the Helsinki City
School of Design (RISD) in Providence, Rhode Island. She
Art Museum in Finland and the Marian Goodman Gallery in
studied in Rome between 1977 and 1978 in a RISD honors
New York in 2004;the Cisneros Fontanals Art Foundation in
program. Because she spoke fluent Italian, she was able to
Miami in 2005;the Tate Modern in London in 2007–2008;and
befriend Italian intellectuals and artists.
the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art in 2011.
Although Woodman used different cameras and film formats
In the 2011–2012 exhibitions, the selected video works,
during her career, most of her photographs were taken with
each 23 seconds to 3 minutes 15 seconds in length, were
medium format cameras producing 2-1/4 by 2-1/4 inch (6x6
entitled «’Francesca’ x 2,» «Sculpture,» «Corner,» «Trace,»
cm) square negatives.Woodman created at least 10,000
and «Mask.»
negatives, which her parents now keep.Woodman’s estate,
Woodman created a number of artist’s books, such as
which is managed by Woodman’s parents,consists of over
Portrait of a Reputation, Quaderno dei Dettati e dei Temi
800 prints, tof which only around 120 images had been
(Notebook of Dictations and Compositions), Quaderno
published or exhibited as of 2006.Most of Woodman’s prints
(also known as Quaderno Raffaello), Portraits Friends
are 8 by 10 inches.
Equasions, and Angels, Calendar Notebook. However, the only artist’s book containing Woodman’s photographs that
Many of Woodman’s images are untitled and are known only
was published during her lifetime was Some Disordered
by a location and date.
Interior Geometries.
At RISD, Woodman borrowed a video camera and VTR
Released in January 1981 shortly before Woodman’s death,
and created videotapes related to her photographs in
it is 24 pages in length and is based upon selected pages
which she «methodically whitewashes her own naked body,
from an Italian geometry exercise book. On the pages,
for instance, or compares her torso to images of classical
Woodman had attached 16 photographs and had added
statuary.»
handwriting and white correction fluid.
Francesca Woodman Untitled, New York, 1979-1980
Francesca Woodman Untitled, Rhode Island 1975-1977
Francesca Woodman Self Portrait, Self-timer, 1978
Francesca Woodman Untitled, 1975
Francesca Woodman Providence, Rhode Island, 1976
Francesca Woodman Untitled 1975-1980
Francesca Woodman Untitled from Swan Song series, Providence, Rhode Island, 1978
Francesca Woodman Untitled , New York, 1979-80
Francesca Woodman From Angel Series, Roma, September 1977
Francesca Woodman Untitled, Providence, Rhode Island, 1975-76
Francesca Woodman Self-portrait talking to Vince, Providence, Rhode Island, 1977
Francesca Woodman Untitled, Rome, Italy 1977-1978
Francesca Woodman Self-portrait talking to Vince, Providence, Rhode Island, 1977
Francesca Woodman Self-portrait talking to Vince, Providence, Rhode Island, 1977
Francesca Woodman Untitled, Rome, Italy, 1977-1978
Francesca Woodman Untitled, Rome, Italy, 1978
Galerie Marian Goodman 79 Rue du Temple, 75003 Paris