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Ophiophilia – Are You OK or Out the Door?

Dear Net Buddies and Blazers,

Many things in our lives catch us in their grip and drive us to make questionable decisions, some that may be simply detrimental to our long-term goals, some may be downright dangerous.

Johannesburg-based artist Frances Goodman is asking us to think about personal decisions we make related to one particular area of our lives.

What do you think she is pushing us to think about?

What is the primary material she uses in this sculpture?

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Final post July 7, 2020

Dear Net Buddies and Blazers,

It appears we stumped you with this mental stretching exercise. Well, we won’t hold you in suspense any longer.

You’re not going to believe you couldn’t see this earlier: this sculpture is made of fake fingernails, or acrylic nails to be precise. Super cool huh? Francis Goodman took a very ordinary product and made something completely beguiling in another way – tell us you don’t have trouble taking your eyes off Ophophilia!

Now, what do we think she wants us to think about? In descriptions of her work, she states that her work explores beauty conventions and matrimonial traditions. She wants to illuminate the internal and external pressures individuals feel in their effort to mold themselves into projecting societal norms. She is definitely pushing us, both females and males, to recognize the hold that society’s expectations have on us, we will twist ourselves into to fit in, and what extremes we will go to fund these objects.

So, what decisions do you see others make that might qualify as harming their potential to reach a long-term goal?Here’s a hint: South Africa is the world leader in luxury car sales – which means more people are twisting themselves into knots to afford a car that looks good but loses value the minute they drive it out of the dealer’s showroom. So, they are stressing and scrimping and going into debt to afford something that looks good and flashy but isn’t helping them build their assets or wealth for the long run.

Then what happens if a random pandemic comes along and they get laid off? They still have to pay for that shiny car. What options do you think they have then/now?

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