Carlee Fernández
Carlee Fernández | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1973 (age 51–52) |
| Occupations | Sculptor and photographer |
| Children | Two |
Carlee Fernández (born 1973)[1] is a sculptor and photographer known for her investigations of identity and power through self-portraits and altered taxidermies.[2][3][4]
Biography
Fernández was born in Santa Ana, California in 1973.[1] Being half-Mexican and half-European,[3][5] she has described having unstable cultural experiences.[3] She was also raised in Europe.[3] Now, Fernández has a husband and two children whom are referenced in several of her works.[6]
Art
Bear Studies (2004)
Bear Study (2004)
Fernández believes all animals, including humans, hold great power and elegance.[5] In this respect, her taxidermy efforts are meant as homages to the animals.[5] In many of her works, she honors the bear as an emblem of self-empowerment and unbridled masculinity.[7] For Bear Study (2004),[8] she fully suits up inside of a taxidermied bear.[5]
Bear Hair Study (2004)
In this piece, Fernández takes a self-portrait wearing a “mustache” achieved by placing tufts of bear fur into her nostrils.[9] Bear Hair Study (2004) was collected by the National Portrait Gallery and featured in their traveling exhibition, Portraiture Now: Staging the Self.[7][9]
Domestic Odyssey (2004)
Her series entitled Friends is a body of taxidermy works from which the San Jose Museum of Art selected for their exhibit.[4] She was featured in Domestic Odyssey (2004) under one of its six subdivisions, Desperately Seeking Something [4]. The show took place from March 6 to July 3.[4] Fernández shapes animals into everyday objects such as furniture and utility objects. Her sculpture Lola Isern (2001) melds a goat with a shopping basket.[4] According to the exhibition catalogue, this practice visualizes the totality of consumerism over nature.[4] Lola Isern is also used for the front cover of the catalogue.[4]
Man (2006)
Self Portrait: Portrait of my Father as Manuel Fernández (2006)
Fernández's art explores masculinity through works wherein she casts herself as male subjects.[5][9][10] In her series Man (2006), she embodies masculine figures in various modes.[11] Self Portrait: Portrait of my Father, Manuel Fernández [1] is currently in the possession of the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA) which has included her works in several exhibitions.[1][12][13] This piece was featured in Phantom Sightings: Art After the Chicano Movement.[1][2][14] Pictured are two gelatin silver prints of a photo of her father and a self-portrait as her father.[1] Fernández describes her strive for a replica, having to paint the stripes onto her shirt.[7][15] She leaves out his mustache to show the critical role of facial hair in machismo symbology.[1][15] She sought out her father in a time of irresolution, wanting to manifest his fortitude.[5][7]
Self Portrait as Franz West (2006)
In Self Portrait as Franz West (2006), Fernández takes on the face of the sculptor whom, like her father, she considers a compelling entity.[9][3][2] This work was also featured in LACMA’s Phantom Sightings exhibit.[2][14]
References
- ^ a b c d e f g "Self Portrait: Portrait of My Father, Manuel Fernández". Los Angeles County Museum of Art. Archived from the original on 22 October 2022. Retrieved 19 October 2022.
- ^ a b c d Noriega, Chon A. (2008). "The Orphans of Modernism". Phantom Sightings: Art After the Chicano Movement. University of California Press. ISBN 9780520255630. OCLC 156975255. Retrieved 16 September 2025 – via Internet Archive.
- ^ a b c d e Miranda, Carolina A. (1 September 2010). "How Chicano is it?". ARTnews. Archived from the original on 8 June 2023. Retrieved 16 September 2025.
- ^ a b c d e f g Northrup, JoAnne (2004). Domestic Odyssey. San Jose Museum of Art. pp. 1, 6, 8, 18. ISBN 9780938175292. OCLC 58469705. Retrieved 16 September 2025 – via Internet Archive.
- ^ a b c d e f Carlee Fernandez (Video). Los Angeles County Museum of Art. 14 April 2008. Archived from the original on 25 February 2025. Retrieved 6 November 2022 – via YouTube.
- ^ Mizota, Sharon (6 March 2014). "Carlee Fernández at Acme [in print: A logic that's all his own]". Los Angeles Times (published 7 March 2014). pp. D.16. ProQuest 1504681869. Archived from the original on 17 September 2025. Retrieved 16 September 2025.
- ^ a b c d Artist Carlee Fernandez in "Staging the Self" (Video). National Portrait Gallery. 18 December 2014. Archived from the original on 17 July 2025. Retrieved 6 November 2022 – via YouTube.
- ^ "Artworks: Carlee Fernandez, Bear Study, 2004". Inman Gallery. 2004. Archived from the original on 6 November 2022. Retrieved 6 November 2022.
- ^ a b c d Miranda, Carolina (2014). "What Does Latino Look Like?". ARTnews. Vol. 113, no. 7. Archived from the original on 20 January 2024. Retrieved 16 September 2025.
- ^ Mizota, Sharon (2008). "Phantom Sightings". ARTnews. Vol. 107, no. 10. p. 174. ISSN 0004-3273.
- ^ Bryan-Wilson, Julia (Summer 2008). "Phantom Sightings". Artforum. pp. 432–433. Archived from the original on 2 December 2024. Retrieved 16 September 2025.
- ^ "Exhibition - A Universal History of Infamy: Those of This America". Los Angeles County Museum of Art. 2018. Archived from the original on 10 February 2025. Retrieved 16 September 2025.
- ^ Heibel, Amy (21 June 2011). "Catch it While You Still Can: Human Nature". Unframed. Los Angeles County Museum of Art. Archived from the original on 21 February 2024. Retrieved 19 October 2022.
- ^ a b Haddad, Natalie (9 September 2008). "Phantom Sightings: Art after the Chicano Movement". Frieze. No. 117. Archived from the original on 14 August 2025. Retrieved 16 September 2025.
- ^ a b Carlee Fernandez - Self Portrait: Portrait of my Father, Manuel Fernandez (Video). Los Angeles County Museum of Art. 20 June 2011. Archived from the original on 25 February 2025. Retrieved 6 November 2022 – via YouTube.