Self Portrait 1960

Editor: Here we have Zoe Lerman's "Self Portrait," created around 1960, using pastels. The raw texture immediately caught my attention—you can almost feel the roughness of the pastel on paper. How does the use of such a tactile medium inform our understanding of the work? Curator: It's interesting that you focused on the tactility. I would argue the medium is paramount here. The choice of pastel—a readily available, relatively inexpensive material—points to a very specific context of artistic production. It disrupts the traditional hierarchy, which places oil painting, for example, above ‘mere’ drawing or sketching, which have historically been viewed as 'minor' art forms. Editor: So you're saying that Lerman’s choice challenges the notion of art based on the assumed value of material itself? Curator: Exactly. Think about the labor involved in creating such an image, too. Pastel, unlike oil, demands direct, unfiltered contact. There's little room for elaborate blending or correction. The marks are immediate and deliberate, emphasizing the artist's physical engagement with the medium. How might the constraints or opportunities offered by these particular media reflect on her position as a female artist in the 1960s? Editor: It almost democratizes the process of portraiture… anyone with access to pastels could attempt to capture their own likeness. I hadn't considered how the means of production played into the subject itself. Curator: Consider where Lerman acquired the materials to create it. Mass produced pastels become newly individualized when brought together to portray this likeness. This drawing questions what is considered high or low art, shifting our gaze to acknowledge the social life of things in the picture. Editor: I see! I will now be examining not only what the artwork depicts, but also its method of making. Curator: Precisely. Seeing art through the lens of its material conditions gives it deeper resonance, allowing us to look past subject matter.