Space², Providence, Rhode Island
About this artwork
Woodman is as vague as the shadows that surround her in this haunting self-portrait. The work forms part of a series entitled ‘Space2’, taken while studying at the Rhode Island School of Design in Providence, Rhode Island between 1975 and 1978. The series explores various ways of concealing or flattening her form, reminding the viewer that all photographs are distortions of reality. Woodman uses a prolonged exposure to create an ethereal, transcendental quality in the tradition of Surrealism. The photograph is not a self-portrait in the conventional sense, as it explores the possibilities of representation instead of revealing the artist’s identity.
Updated before 2020
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artist:Francesca WoodmanAmerican (1958 - 1981)
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title:Space², Providence, Rhode Island
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date created:1976
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materials:Gelatin silver print on paper
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measurements:13.90 x 13.90 cm (paper 25.20 x 20.20 cm) (framed: 45.80 x 40.20 x 2.00 cm)
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object type:
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credit line:ARTIST ROOMS National Galleries of Scotland and Tate. Acquired jointly through The d'Offay Donation with assistance from the National Heritage Memorial Fund and the Art Fund 2008
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accession number:AR00349
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gallery:
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glossary:
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artwork photographed by:Antonia Reeve

Francesca Woodman
Francesca Woodman
Francesca Woodman’s photographs explore issues of gender and the self, looking at the representation of the body, and more specifically at how her own body relates to the world and her surroundings. Born in Denver, Colorado, Woodman studied at Rhode Island School of Design from 1975 to 1978,...