Page 12 - Art First: Partou Zia: Portraits Beyond Self
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e mysterious light switches (or plugs) that appear in many of Partou’s
works are present here, mischievously reminding us of the invisible energy
that powers our normality. Body and background merge into each other
as if made of that energy rather than flesh and walls.
And how those touching details reinforce the delicate impact of the slightly
later of the two images, that of 2002: the gleam in that blue earring, comple-
mented by the yellow paint on the end of her brush, the little painting of the
rider at eye level to the artist’s right.
e viewer is implicated in these images. If we understand the self as implying
separation and self-absorption, then these are not self-portraits. e merging
of background and foreground that characterizes many of Partou’s works
is indicative of a move beyond the clear spatial differentiation of many Oedipal
or phallic visual structures. Partou’s work is not about the ego. It is about
a de-differentiated corporeal being.
e paintings with two figures are especially interesting to think about
in exploring this idea.
In Accord II (2007), cat. no. 6, twinned figures embrace while in the back-
ground two lone trees−or are they plumes of smoke?−lean towards them,
and two pairs of slippers float, suggesting home. If this is a self-portrait,
cat no. 6 In Accord II, 2007, oil on canvas, 100 x 100 cm
