Sunday Arts Magazine

1 Mar 2021

Flesh after Fifty………. Jane Scott talks to David and Neil

Arts, Performing Arts

Flesh After Fifty is an exploration of older women in art. Through the mediums of photography, video, sculpture, painting and prints, the exhibition celebrates positive images of women over the age of 50 who have lived a bit and ‘have the bodies to prove it’. Alongside the free exhibition, Flesh after Fifty presents a provocatively diverse and entertaining program of free and ticketed events – talks, tours, film screenings and workshops from 7 March to 11 April in the Laundries Building at Abbotsford Convent. From physical and mental health forums, a writer’s panel, a mini women’s film festival titled Flicks after Fifty, to burlesque performance and circus training workshops; artists, performers, academics and community leaders explore the politics and social impact of the depiction of women over fifty within the arts. The program also features an evening of grand dining surrounded by the artworks hosted by award winning co Award-winning comedian, actor and TV presenter Denise Scott and a series of free education programs for senior secondary and tertiary students to explore the works, contest perceptions and foster discussion. At the cornerstone of the Flesh after Fifty commissioned works is Ponch Hawkes’ 500 Strong, featuring hundreds of nude photographs of women over the age of 50 from across Victoria.  Renowned Victorian artists Penny Byrne, Patrick Pound, Claire Lambe, Catherine Bell, Cathy Staughton, Sam Jinks, Megan Evans, Niki Koutouzis, Hotham Street Ladies and Maree Clarke have also created works that challenge and explore current perceptions of how older women are represented through art. Curators Jane Scott and Kirsty Grant have selected a further 10 artists whose art depicts older women’s issues and concerns utilising contemporary perspectives and techniques including video and text-based art.  Artists include photographer Janina Green, collage artist Deborah Kelly, sculptor Greg Taylor, photographer Ruth Maddison and figurative painter and sculptor Peter Wegner. “Flesh after Fifty is challenging and changing views of older women in new and innovative ways through engagement with the arts. The exhibition will explore many aspects of what it means to be a mature woman, celebrating diversity and recognising the beauty and strength that comes with ageing”, said Martha Hickey, Professor of Obstetrics and Gynaecology and Initiator, Flesh after Fifty. The title of this exhibition comes from a quote by the renowned American photo-journalist, Eve Arnold (1912-2012), who photographed Hollywood star Joan Crawford on several occasions. The first, in 1956, was on assignment for the Woman’s Home Companion magazine, part of the publicity campaign for Autumn Leaves, a film in which Crawford (then in her early fifties) played a spinster wooed by a man many years her junior. Arnold recalled: ‘The first time I met Joan Crawford she took off her clothes, stood in front of me nude and insisted I photograph her’, adding, ‘sadly, something happens to flesh after fifty.’

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