"WANNABE" by ELISA GONZÁLEZ MIRALLES, questions on self-projection in today’s society
23/03/2017.
La Fabrica
metalocus, INÉS LALUETA
metalocus, INÉS LALUETA
La Fábrica publishes the first work of the Madrid photographer, who uses Japanese love dolls as a metaphor to reflect on stereotypes and the construction of identity
Wannabe, by Elisa González Miralles
Wannabe, by Elisa González Miralles
Wannabe, by Elisa González Miralles
Wannabe, by Elisa González Miralles
Wannabe, by Elisa González Miralles
Wannabe, by Elisa González Miralles
Wannabe, by Elisa González Miralles
Wannabe is a photographic project about doll-like girls in Japanese culture —about the objectification of these women to serve societal customs that lead to android-like behaviours. It illustrates how people who grow up in a given culture unconsciously feel the need to follow a predetermined role.
With this work, Elisa González Miralles aims to question how societal standards —not only in Japan, but elsewhere— constrain human behaviour and the development of identity. Questions that affect us all, especially considering the obsession with self-projection in today’s society.
With this work, Elisa González Miralles aims to question how societal standards —not only in Japan, but elsewhere— constrain human behaviour and the development of identity. Questions that affect us all, especially considering the obsession with self-projection in today’s society.
Acording González Miralles:
"With this project I want to question how a society and its standards determine the behavior of an individual and limit the development of their identity. I talk about girls who want to look like dolls, about the tranfortaions of these women into objects, to serve society and customs, that generate automatons behaviors.
"With this project I want to question how a society and its standards determine the behavior of an individual and limit the development of their identity. I talk about girls who want to look like dolls, about the tranfortaions of these women into objects, to serve society and customs, that generate automatons behaviors.
The idea of Wannabe starts with a trip that the photographer made to Japan in 2002. At that time the author discovered the habit of "replacing" real women with these hyperrealistic dolls. In 2013, she returned to Japan with the idea of doing work on those objects, but she encountered the paradox that women themselves adapted their shapes and even altered their physical appearance to become replicas of those artificial, anatomically and physically perfect products, but lacking in soul.
The photographs that compose the series Wannabe test the sharpness of the viewer being at times more than difficult to differentiate the images of real women from those that correspond to dolls.
And to deepen this conflict, Gonzalez Miralles uses a symbolic element: the balloon fish, delicious and exclusive meat, but very dangerous if not prepared properly, because it contains a neurotoxic poison that causes muscle paralysis and death by asphyxiation. This fish represents, she says, "the unconscious of these women, who, doomed to meet social desires are necessary to meet the standard of beauty imposed slogans".
More information
Cover - Pages
Hardcover - 64 pages
Language
Spanish-English
ISBN
978-84-16248-85-8
Size - price
19 x 28cm - € 38
Elisa González Miralles
Elisa González Miralles, master in documental photography from EFTI Madrid (2007), received the FotoPres 07 and Unicaja 08 first prizes. She received a grant from World Press Photo, Asian Europe Foundation and the Philippine Centre of Photo-journalism to take part in the Urban Youth project in Manila (Philippines, 2007), and participated in Darkside II in the Fotomuseum Winterthur (Switzerland, 2009).
In 2009, Elisa founded the MADPHOTO academy (Madrid) together with fellow photographers Damián González and Manolo Yllera.
During recent years, Elisa has exhibited her work in the Rome International Festival, the Art Photography Show in San Diego, the Lishui Festival in China, and the RayKo’s camara show in San Francisco amongst others. Moreover, she has participated in different workshops with remarkable authors like Antoine D’Agata, Carl de Keyzer, Christopher Anderson, and Guy Tillim.
In 2014, she was a finalist in NEXOFOTO (Madrid), Descubrimientos PHE (Madrid), VOIES OFF (Arles), Encontros da Imagem (Braga), FULL CONTACT (Tarragona), and the JAAL Project (Madrid). In 2015, she received the TINA PRIZE (Berlin), she was shortlisted for the BIPA prize (Barcelona), took part in the “Más cerca” exhibition at the MadisMad gallery (Madrid) and the JAAL PHOTO Fair (Madrid). WANNABE is her latest project and it was exhibited at Blank Paper (Madrid) coinciding with PHE15. It has also been exhibited at PhotoIreland 16.
(*) Elisa González Miralles portrait by Roberto Villalon
In 2009, Elisa founded the MADPHOTO academy (Madrid) together with fellow photographers Damián González and Manolo Yllera.
During recent years, Elisa has exhibited her work in the Rome International Festival, the Art Photography Show in San Diego, the Lishui Festival in China, and the RayKo’s camara show in San Francisco amongst others. Moreover, she has participated in different workshops with remarkable authors like Antoine D’Agata, Carl de Keyzer, Christopher Anderson, and Guy Tillim.
In 2014, she was a finalist in NEXOFOTO (Madrid), Descubrimientos PHE (Madrid), VOIES OFF (Arles), Encontros da Imagem (Braga), FULL CONTACT (Tarragona), and the JAAL Project (Madrid). In 2015, she received the TINA PRIZE (Berlin), she was shortlisted for the BIPA prize (Barcelona), took part in the “Más cerca” exhibition at the MadisMad gallery (Madrid) and the JAAL PHOTO Fair (Madrid). WANNABE is her latest project and it was exhibited at Blank Paper (Madrid) coinciding with PHE15. It has also been exhibited at PhotoIreland 16.
(*) Elisa González Miralles portrait by Roberto Villalon
