The Holy Virgin Mary

The Holy Virgin Mary- Chris Ofili- 1996

• The colour in the background is very rich golds
• blue robes- traditional in depictions of the virgin Mary
• virgin Mary at centre of image with female genitalia collaged around her
• black Madonna
• incorporates elephant dung on one breast- inspired by a period of time spent in Zimbabwe
• classic christian iconography given a modern and multicultural perspective
• "hip-hop version of an old master painting"

• made in around the same time scale as Myra and exhibited in the same controversial exhibition
• CONTEXT: THIS EXHIBITION WAS CRITICISED BY MANY AND THOUGHT TO BE TRYING TO BOOST THE VALUE OF CERTAIN WORKS BY SHOWING THEM IN INSTITUTIONS AND PUBLIC MUSEUMS
• INCLUDED OTHER 'OFFENSIVE' WORKS BY TRACEY EMIN AND SARAH LUCAS
• UPON ENTRY TO THE EXHIBITION VIEWERS WERE WARNED "There will be works of art on display in the Sensation exhibition which some people may find distasteful. Parents should exercise their judgment in bringing their children to the exhibition. One gallery will not be open to those under the age of 18"
• obviously depicts religious iconography so is religious but also has a self proclaimed hip-hop element, as well as depicting a black Madonna so might appeal to people of colour
• Quote from Chris Ofili- I don’t feel as though I have to defend it. The people who are attacking this painting are attacking their own interpretation, not mine. You never know what’s going to offend people, and I don’t feel it’s my place to say any more.

• This relates to religion, as it depicts as holy figure and the ways that various people reacted to this- e.g. devout christians being offended by the juxtapose of 'pornographic' images being placed next to the virgin Mary, seen as anti-religion and anti-catholic
• For some context Chris Ofili was an altar boy in his youth and also didn't understand why people were offended as he said "it's only a picture of The Virgin Mary, not the actual thing"
• Could also relate to cultural issues as it was the elephant dung that offended many, but this was used to africanise the virgin Mary, and as a response to the artists time in Zimbabwe where he felt particularly connected to nature, animals and the earth
• Quotes that could relate are:

"Offence is clearly personal and idiosyncratic; but offence can also be the shared property of a community"

"I argue that cultural conflict has a distinctive local profile. Cities exhibit different profiles of contention contention, based in part on the demographic, institutional and political makeup of the city. Fights over art and culture are not just the result of clashing personalities or contending value; they also represent the democratic outcome of citizens negotiating the consequences of social change within their communities."

"My premise is straightforward, I believe controversies over art and expression are symptomatic of deeper community struggles. Artworks often serve as lightning rods, bringing forward and giving voice to underlying tension caused by social change. When communities experience a new influx of new populations, new institutions, new types of families, new patterns of leisure, and new technologies, community members fight over symbols such as art and culture as a way to assert themselves."

I think that I'll either end up using the second or third quote in my essay as I think they say the most, in the most concise way. They both really get across the tone of the rest of the extract and the way the author himself feels about the subject in a very non-biased way.