Zoë Charlton, Those Girls #1, 2013

Zoë Charlton builds dense sticker collages over figures to reveal the complicated facets of the historical positioning of people’s identity markers as they relate to power, privilege, and desire. The “Those Girls” series was inspired by Pablo Picasso’s Les Demoiselles d'Avignon (1907), and by suburbia. Charlton explores representations of white supremacy and the American dream in pop culture and art history, delving into the ways these capitalistic ideals limit the aspirations and possibilities for all people within our society. In her “Those Girls” series, Charlton collages stickers of plants, princess castles, and African masks over the heads of mid-century paper dolls—young white girls—to show the ways that they are restricted by their understanding of the world. Every sticker Charlton uses suggests a multitude of history and symbolism.

Rachael Carruthers
Student Committee Selection 2016–2017

More from the series “Those Girls”: