Pop Artist Allen Jones
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The concept of voyeurism plays an important role in the erotic imagery of Allen Jones' art. Jones is a British artist whose first rise to prominence occurred during the Pop Art scene of the early 1960's. Initially, Jones was known for his paintings of buses and his experimental use of shaped canvases. However, by 1963, he was becoming increasingly known for his use of erotic images. Eroticism is an important theme in Jones' work because he sees it as being a vital part of everyday life. Jones has claimed that he wants his work to be accessible to everyone. In his own words, eroticism helps make his work more accessible because it "is an absolutely universal subject which relates you to every other human being" (Webb, 1975, p. 375). Jones has also noted that, in contrast to abstract forms in art, "eroticism transcends cerebral barriers... and demands a direct emotional response" (Marks, 1984, p. 410). Voyeurism is a specific aspect of eroticism which is uniquely suited as a theme for art. Art itself is a visual form in which the viewer, like a voyeur, is detached from the image which is being viewed. When the image on the canvas is erotic, the voyeuristic aspects of art are further emphasized. Pop art often deals with images which are found in modern culture. As a Pop artist, Jones specifically deals with the erotic images of popular culture. Thus, although his painting style is influenced by the American artist R. B. Kitaj, Jones' choice of imagery is influenced
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f the wood is left unpainted in the background of the figure.
Jones has claimed that the erotic images in his work are incidental, and that he takes a "purely visual" approach to the creation of art (Phaidon Dictionary..., 1973, p. 181). In interviews, he has indicated that he usually works from visual images first, and that the contextual images follow on their own accord. Thus, "the shapes themselves suggest the subject, not the subject the shapes (Osborne, 1981, p. 279). For example, in Float (1972), although Jones admits that the nude acrobat leaping over two huge balls contains a "phallic connotation," at the same time, he has indicated that "the actual problem was to manipulate the two circles with the acute accent above them until the picture jelled" (Webb, 1975, p. 372). Nevertheless, despite such claims, it can be said that eroticism pervades all aspects of Jones' work, including his use of shapes and contours. In particular, Jones maintains a technical style which makes extensive use of contrasts. Often, these visual contrasts are related to the sexual dichotomies which exist between men and women. As an example, Bihalji-Merin has noted Jones' intermingling of smooth or blurred shapes with pointed or sharp ones (p.
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Approximate Word count = 1827
Approximate Pages = 7 (250 words per page)
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