Marilyn Holsing's exhibition 'Further Tales of Young Marie Antoinette' juxtaposes the endless expanse of the imagination when a little girl is playing pretend with the stuffy claustrophobia of bourgeois femininity. When a little girl is immersed in play she is free to go anywhere, even if in reality she is bound to a very tight space.
Holsing lets viewers into Antoinette's interior in a strange realm where fantasy-meets-history, where gossip and fairytales are exchanged and mixed up. Her works echo of feminine pastimes from childhood to adulthood, from dollhouses to dioramas to embroidery-esque paintings.
Holsing explains her take on the modernized Marie: "She is still living at Le Hameau, the little play farm she had at Versailles. In my tales the revolution is a long way off if it ever comes." This collection focuses on the women subservient to Antoinette, mostly maids and ladies-in-waiting, and the gossip that ensues.
Enter Holsing's dollhouse of sugar, spice and gossip that may not be so nice. The exhibition will show until January 21, 2012 at Gallery Joe.