Forest, 1998© Justine Kurland Text Tish Wrigley The various faces of the North American wilderness are riven with iconography of romance, rebellion, escape and freedom. Here cowboys fought Indians, Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid evaded justice, Henry David Thoreau lived in the woods, Jack Kerouac went on the road and Timothy Treadwell tried to understand grizzly bears. It’s a profoundly masculine narrative, all John Wayne, Beat poets and Huckleberry Finn. But where are the girls?
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Forest,1998©JustineKurlandTextTishWrigleyThevariousfacesoftheNorthAmericanwildernessarerivenwithiconographyofromance,rebellion,escapeandfreedom.HerecowboysfoughtIndians,ButchCassidyandtheSundanceKidevadedjustice,HenryDavidThoreaulivedinthewoods,JackKerouacwentontheroadandTimothyTreadwelltriedtounderstandgrizzlybears.It’saprofoundlymasculinenarrative,allJohnWayne,BeatpoetsandHuckleberryFinn.Butwherearethegirls?
Obviouslytherehavebeenwomenontheroad,runningandrebellingjustashardastheboys.PhotographerJustineKurlandwasoneofthem.For20years,shewentonmany-month-longroadtripsacrosstheUnitedStatesinanoldgreenvan,exploringandtakingpictures.Shehadanumberofsubjects,butbetween1997and2002shefocusedontheGirlPictures,stagingimagesinspiredbyteenagerunaways,imagesredolentwithmodernityandmyth.
“Istagedthegirlsasastandingarmyofteenagedrunawaysinresistancetopatriarchalideals,”shesays.“Thegirlsinthesephotographshavegatheredtogetherinsolidarity,claimingterritoryoutsidethemarginsoffamilyandinstitutions.”
TwoGirlsattheFarm,2002©JustineKurlandKurlandwouldscoutevocativelocations,oftenwithlinkstothe19th-centuryWesternfrontier,andrecruitheryouthfulsubjectsfromlocaltownsandschools.“IneverknewwhereIwouldenduporwhomIwouldfind,”shesays,“soitwasimpossibletopredeterminetheoutcome.IallowedmynarrativestounravelasIconstructedthem.Iwantedthepicturestocontainbothmyprojectionandtheactualityofthesituation.”
Whatispresentedisanotherworldlyversionoffemalelifeinthewild,freedfromthelimitsofpatriarchalpower.Boysarepresentonlyasvictims–beingtorturedbynudityoroverpoweredbya“two-headedmonster”.Otherwise,theworldisfemaleandmade
upofpagan,primalandprosaicactivities–girlscarryinghomedeercarcasses,swimmingingreenlakes,curleduptogetherinmakeshifttents,playing,camping,burning,eating,lounging,climbing,dancing,exploring.Inone,twofigures“makehappy”inanabandonedcar,inanothertheyeatketchupsandwiches,inanothertheyemergelikedungaree-cladconquerorsfromunderabridge.Thetitlesaddtotheatmosphere–TheSirensclamberuparoadsidebank,TheGuardianAngelsitsonascrubbybankbyamotorway,BloodSisterslieentangledunderatarpaulin.
OneRed,OneBlue,2001©JustineKurlandButwhilemythandlegendarewovenintothepictures,sotooaregritandugliness.Aclusterofteenagersare“shipwrecked”inaburnt-outcar;oneclimbsablossom-soakedtreeframedbyamotorwayandaloomingindustrialcoastline;thegirlinflightfromaforestfirestreamingsmokemightgenuinelybeinperil.Weunderstandthesepicturesarepartinvention,butthetruthspileup–notleastintheclothes.Theubiquitoushoodies,tanktops,baggyjeans,combattrousers,oversizedshirtsaretoofamiliartobeacostume.Thesegirlsarenotcreations,theyarecreatingversionsofthemselves,orevenidealisedversionsofKurland’sowngirlhood.
Shesays,“Iwasinterestedingirlsbecauseoftheirpotentialbecoming.Iwantedtowarnthemawayfromadulthood,andretroactivelytocorrectwhatIhadn’tbeenabletofixformyself–becomingcompliciteconomically,culturallyandpolitically.”
20yearson,anexhibitionatMitchell-Innes&Nashisthefirstpresentationoftheartist’scompletefirstprintingoftheGirlPictures.Politicallyandpersonally,theycontinuetoresonate.Rightnowwomenhavebeenforcedintothestreetstocampaignforprotectionoftheirbodiesandrights,andthisspiritalignswithKurland’sadventuringrunaways.“It’snecessarytolookatthisworkinthecontextofourcurrentpoliticalsituation,wherehumanrightsareunderconstantattack.Thegirlsinmyphotographshavebeenmarchingfor20yearstobuildaworldthatispossibletolivein.”
CandyToss,2000©JustineKurlandForKurland,shereturnstoherimagesasanewlystationaryartist.Hergreenvanwastotalledafewyearsago,effectivelyendingherlifeontheroad.Shehasbeguntoexploreherroots,whileputtingdownnewonesofherown.“Inmanyways,myroadtripswereaboutputtingasmuchdistancebetweenmeandmyselfasIcould,aboutgoingasfarawayasmycarcouldtakeme.IdecidedtogobacktoseewhatIwasrunningfrom.”
Asforthegirlsthemselves–“NoneofthemliveingirlcollectivesasIimagined.Butdreamsmakewayforotherdreams.Iliketothinkthatnomatterwhat,theysometimeslookatthepicturesandremember,howeverbriefly,thattheywereoncefree.”
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