Warnock Lecture Series: Rachel Haidu (University of Rochester)

"The Shape of the Self”

Rachel Haidu's talk considers the relationship between painterly shape--often relegated to a mere compositional device--and current conceptions of selfhood. Departing from the role of shape in psychological diagnostics (Rorschach) and individuated consciousness (Wittgenstein), she argues that its uses within contemporary painting (Philip Guston, Amy Sillman) point us instead towards contemporary conceptions of selfhood, which in turn might lead towards new frameworks for understanding collective, historical experience.

Rachel Haidu is Associate Professor of Art History at the University of Rochester. Her first book, The Absence of Work: Marcel Broodthaers 1964-1976 (October Books, 2010) examines the functions of national identity, the public sphere, and “bad faith,” and her current book project is on resurgent notions of selfhood in contemporary art. Her criticism has appeared in Artforum, Texte zur Kunst, and October, and she has written essays on a wide range of artists, including James Coleman, Maria Hassabi, Sharon Hayes, Edward Krasiński, Ulrike Müller, Gerhard Richter, and Andrzej Wróbleswki.

Northwestern University Department of Art History presents the Warnock Lecture Series.

Image: Philip Guston, Head and Bottle, 1975

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