Andrea Fraser Essay

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Andrea Fraser is a performance artist, mainly known for her work in the area of institutional critique. After dropping out of high school she attended Whitney Independent Study Program and School of Visual Arts in New York City. Andrea created a performance/video art work called “untitled” in 2003. The work consisted of a recording of the artist herself having sex with a private collector. New York times magazine author Guy Trebay wrote an article reviewing, dissecting, and honestly categorizing the work. I agree with Guy Trebay’s view Andrea Fraser's work "untitled.” His view, that on the artist claims empowerment taking place in the work itself were misguided and naïve and the category he has placed on the work. Guy’s article discredits Andrea’s claim of female empowerment when he calls her “a hooker with the heart of gold. (Newyork Times) His statement is judgmental and misogynistic and yet it describes the true colors of the artist. One of those colors being gold, she shows this color when she is concerned that the reputation of the private collector she sold her body to on video, might be damaged, his feelings hurt, and even his …show more content…

Prostitution being: the act or practice of engaging in sexual intercourse for money. (Dictionary.com) The artist even takes the action one step further by recording it and thereby transforming her act of prostitution into an act of porn. Porn and prostitution are not art in any sense. One being a form of entertainment that is taboo and often seen as wrongful and childish and the other being a transaction that is for one illegal and secondly morally questionable. He further categorizes her work by comparing it to works done by contemporary artist containing pornographic content. One of the artists mentioned is Jeff Koons and his work of him having sex with his wife. His work was labeled as porn by the art community and permanently damaged Koons’ reputation as an

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