On 9 Decemeber, Tartu Art Museum will open Anna-Stina Treumund’s personal exhibition “M’s Wet Dream”. The exhibition focuses on the female body, its natural functioning and limits that are set on it by the male-centric society. The exhibition will remain open until February 26 2017.
At the exhibition “M’s Wet Dream”, Anna-Stina Treumund takes the freedom to act like men and to criticize the completely phallocentric mentality that surrounds us and the culture that has grown out of it. She says “fuck off!” to the male-centric world view that sees women only as sexual objects or mothers and sets hypocritical limits to the self-conscious and behaviour of women in the public space. “Women’s rights are human rights” is a slogan that is hard to argue with. When we get to individual cases, however, the public opinion can still find arguments why the same things are not allowed to both men and women. “M’s Wet Dream” examines the limits that are set on the social life, the physiological performance and sexuality of women and visualizes how these can be broken.
The artist has said the following, “With this exhibition I’m trying to empower the sexual organs and bodily fluids of women. Certain bodily fluids are considered more natural depending on the sex. There are contradictory rules for men and women about excreting urine and spit in the public space. Even though it is normal for men to urinate at a bus stop, the women are polite and keep everything bodily for themselves: public urinating or breastfeeding is taboo. Our culture is phallocentric both visually and verbally. Women’s sexuality and sexual pleasures are depicted as passive. Instead of an erect phallus, I will bring an erect clitoris into the gallery. We are not merely princesses, mothers or whores.”
Anna-Strina Treumund (b 1982) has studied photography at the Tartu Art College (2003−2007) and at the Estonian Academy of Arts (2007−2010). She has supplemented her studies at the art academies of Vienna and Vilnius. Since 2012, she is writing her PhD at the Estonian Academy of Arts. Treumund uses photography to express thoughts and ideas about the visibility of queer women in contemporary Estonian society. She has participated in numerous exhibitions in Estonia and abroad and is one of the founders of the gender festival Ladyfest and the discussion group Virgina Woolf is not Afraid of You. Web page: www.annastinatreumund.com.
One month after the opening, in the beginning of January a publication about the oeuvre of Anna-Stina Treumund from 2004 to 2016 will be presented. It will consist of a photo album and a collection of articles. It has been compiled by Rael Artel, designed by Jaana Davidjants and edited by Dana Karjatse. The essays have been written by Airi Triisberg, Laima Kreivyte and Austeja Cepauskaite. The publication also contains a lengthy interview with the artist.
M’s Wet Dream. 2015. Pigment ink photo, 80×70 cm. Courtesy of the artist
Exhibition curator: Rael Artel
Graphic design: Jaana Davidjants
Exhibition team: Joanna Hoffmann, Margus Joonsalu, Bruno Kadak, Dana Karjatse, Hanna-Liis Kont, Kristel Sibul, Peeter Talvistu
Thanks: Cultural Endowment of Estonia, Estonian Artists’ Union, Domina Frankie, Redi Koobak, Eva Mustonen, Riinu Rahuoja, Martin Rünk, Lea Tui and the horses of Veskimetsa Riding Centre.
Additional information:
Rael Artel
Exhibition curator
rael@tartmus.ee
