Blue I, II, III is concerned with the anxieties surrounding issues such as gender and self-identity. I address traditional notions of gender norms through video portraiture, sound and installation. These videos, referencing Renaissance and Baroque painting and culture, feature bodies who do not conform to traditional gender binaries.

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Gender is the range of characteristics pertaining to, and differencing between, masculinity and femininity. Blue has always been perceived as a ‘gendered’ colour. Since the 12th Century, blue, a precious pigment often derived from lapis lazuli, was associated with divinity and femininity and was often reserved for depictions of the Madonna. This is in contrast to the twentieth-century concept of ‘blue for boys’ and ‘pink for girls’.

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The videos were shot as a reference to reclined or seemingly floating icons and figures often present in frescos on cathedral ceilings. The videos are played on three LED TVs presented as a traditional triptych. The semi-nude bodies in the videos are reminiscent of Michelangelo’s frescos in the Sistine Chapel, which were censored due to the Pope’s view that nudity was outrageous and shameful.

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Performers: Isolde Donohoe, Day Magee.

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Sound: Christy O’Brien.