David LEVINTHAL: “HEROES, SLUTS & SERVANTS”
Robert Hirsch, Véronique Côté, Lisa Parrish
Exhibition catalog with essays covering series Hitler Moves East, Blackface, Hell’s Belles, XXX, Barbie, and Mein Kampf, and more.
Levinthal’s exploration of cultural artifacts eventually branched out from male heroes to include pinups, barbies, and blackface dolls, noting the dark side of American idealism through material culture. The glorious kitsch of vintage collectibles carried the nostalgic memories of iconic pasts, but they also bore witness to the stereotypes and prejudices of their time. As such, archival inquiry, the process through which we reinterpret cultural artifacts for contemporary audiences, is an essential tool in understanding many of the perplexing social problems of our modern world.
CEPA Gallery
Publication Date: January 2022