Sleep Selfie I 2020

Curator: I am drawn to the quiet intimacy of this painting. It has such a gentle vulnerability about it. Editor: It's definitely serene, but my immediate thought goes to those striped sheets—the materiality of home and the textile industry. Let's dive into Valeria Duca's 2020 painting, "Sleep Selfie I," executed in oil. Curator: The 'Sleep Selfie' instantly situates it in the context of contemporary image-making and performance of self. How does Duca engage with the concept of the ‘selfie’ beyond mere representation? Editor: Interesting point. For me, the means by which that striped fabric is made—the cotton farms, the dye processes, the global shipping networks involved—speaks volumes about the everyday. Think about the labor and materials involved to get these goods to our homes! Curator: Yes, but what of the model’s gaze? She appears tired, reflective... perhaps even burdened. The work reminds us of the weight of constant self-presentation in the digital age. We see, perhaps, the ‘authentic’ self resisting the performance. It asks, what is the emotional labor behind this supposedly effortless image? Editor: The stripes are so clearly painted. Not simply replicated but translated, by the artist’s hand. There is nothing effortless in the execution. Every painted line signifies labor—a painterly act and that gives her painting more gravity. The lines visually dominating, however, can you find in them an artistic meaning or significance? Curator: Well, that stark contrast of color emphasizes that conflict of the performed vs. authentic self, creating that interesting friction we observe. Furthermore, considering gender, it hints at the societal pressures women face to always present a perfect image, even in private moments. This could also invite comparisons to earlier portraits in art history that also attempted to capture the private selves of their subjects, offering a bridge between tradition and our contemporary social media saturated existence. Editor: Right, seeing how material items play roles in broader conversations about identity and societal roles helps us really understand that this “everydayness” Duca depicts, with simple materials, invites larger structural interrogations about the culture of consumption. I suppose we could see those mass produced lines being at war with the single authentic person that is painted on the work! Curator: Absolutely. Duca has offered a moment of introspection, challenging us to question the reality we project and perform, as well as the means of how these performative mechanisms came to exist. Editor: A productive reminder that, however ‘effortless’ the image appears, there is always a story of material creation, physical work, and human cost behind the scenes, shaping these representations.