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ARTISTS AND THEIR ALTER EGOS

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Throughout history, artists have used 'alter-egos' for artistic, political and personal reasons. An alter-ego can be as simple as a stage name or a completely new personality or secret identity.


Other artists not covered here include Banksy, David Bowie, Eminem, Andy Kaufman.

Below is a presentation of six important artists who use alter egos in different ways including a few Canadians you should know!

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MARCEL DUCHAMP

AKA R.Mutt, AKA Rrose Selavy

1887-1968

Cubist, Dadaist and Conceptual artist
Rejected the idea that art was to please the eye.
Around the 1920s collaborated with photographer Man Ray
Attempt to remove the author from the work of art
Readymade – everyday objects declared as art.

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CLAUDE CAHUN

AKA Lucie Renee Mathilde Schwob
1894-1954
born in Nantes, France

Highly staged, surrealistic self-portraiture, questioned gender roles.
Collaborated with her partner Suzanne Moore AKA Marcel Moore
Cahun made work for themself
Most Surrealist artists were men, and their primary images were erotic depictions of women.

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CINDY SHERMAN

no alias

born, 1954 in Glenridge, NJ, USA

"Film Stills" subvert depictions of women in cinema
Later works focused on the grotesque, art history, and surrealism but approprate popular visual forms such as advertising and the centerfold.
Recent work deals with aging
Always depicts herself

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RODNEY GRAHAM

no alias

born 1949 in Abbotsford, BC

Plays different personas in his film and photographic works
Offers social/historical/artistic commentary using parody and self-effacing humour.

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Rodney Graham, Tattooed Man on Balcony,
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IRIS HAUSSLER

b.1962 in Germany, lives in Toronto

Creates fictitious artist's personas including their complete bodies of works and their personal physical environments.
The Legacy of Joseph Wagenbach, 2006
Sophie La Rosière Project (2016-17)
Florence Hasard (2017-18)

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CAROL SAWYER

The Natalie Brettschneider Archive

Ongoing series of photographs, texts, music recitals, and two films crossing the globe from BC to Paris.

"Brettschneider is a stand-in for all of the female artists who have slipped through the gaps of history only to languish in obscurity, gain notoriety as models or muses of more famous male artists, or perhaps, like Claude Cahun, be “rediscovered”."

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