Who is the beast?: navigating representational and social complexities through the use of animal forms in selected works by Diane Victor
Date
2014-03
Authors
De Harde, Laura
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Abstract
Diane Victor has been a prominent figure in the South African artworld since
she won the Atelier Award in the 1980s. Since then she has self-inflicted
violence into her work; stretched it and stripped it whilst she wrestles with the
beast within others and how she portrays that in her work. This research
report is concerned with answering the question Who is the ‘Beast’ in the
work of Diane Victor? It begins by defining the term ‘Beast’ and situating
Victor’s artistic practice in an identified trajectory in Western art history. The
report traces the presence of the Beasts in Victor’s work, and follows the
metamorphosis of the human form as its internal corruption is explored and
revealed through the use of non-human animal parts. Furthermore it
investigates the artist’s use of her practice to position herself in relation to the
values and conventions inherited from the culture in which she lives. Finally, it
provides invaluable insight into who the Beast may have been all along and
moreover what it means to be human.