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Octopus and Melon

1989
(Japanese, b. 1955)
Japan, 20th century
gelatin silver print
Image: 41.1 x 50.1 cm (16 3/16 x 19 3/4 in.); Paper: 50.5 x 60.7 cm (19 7/8 x 23 7/8 in.); Matted: 61 x 71.1 cm (24 x 28 in.)
Gift of Friends of Photography 1998.16
Location: not on view
This artwork is known to be under copyright.

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Description

Michiko Kon has created a remarkable body of work by assembling and photographing intricate still-life compositions. She employs a variety of materials in her constructions, such as fragments of raw fish, vegetables, flowers, and insects. Kon chooses perishable subjects, hoping to stimulate the viewer's five senses and "because life contains a delicate beauty that attracts other objects, and a time limit." A fish market near her studio supplies much of the matter for Kon's works, including Octopus and Melon. The halved melon, covered with the skin of an octopus, alludes to the themes of life, death, and female sexuality.
Octopus and Melon

Octopus and Melon

1989

Michiko Kon

(Japanese, b. 1955)
Japan, 20th century

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