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Status of Women, Social engagement & mixed media, 2010
(photos by Jessica Burton)  

ABOUT OFUNNE OBIAMIWE (follow Status of Women at http://www.ofunne.com/01/2010/status-of-women/)

Ofunne Obiamiwe is a mixed media artist, who  lives and works in Los Angeles, California. She is an associate professor at Santa Monica College, where she teaches digital art, and the founder of Republic of Peace, an emerging arts and culture endeavor.

Ofunne holds an MFA from Otis College of Art and Design in the field of Public Practice,  a BA in English/Drama from the University of Nigeria Nsukka and a certificate in New Media from the Academy of Entertainment and Technology in Santa Monica.

Her multimedia installation work embodies activism and social justice issues while utilizing art as a conduit to inspire change by heightening awareness and provoking action.

Ofunne investigates the conflation of art, culture and technology and she views her work not only as dialogue with the audience, but also paths to self-awareness and discovery. Repurposing, recontextualizing and détournement  are employed  to reflect  the zeitgeist of our times. Through themes that explore interaction,  myth and ritual, she entices the viewer to invest in their own stories.

A recurring concept in her work is the impact of corporations,  institutions and popular culture on our daily lives.

With over a decade experience in education, Ofunne sees teaching as the ultimate form of creativity.

http://www.republicofpeace.com/          |         http://www.oilactivism.com/

STATUS OF WOMEN Statement

Status of Women will showcase profiles of ten diverse women artists from my Facebook Los Angeles network friends list. The title is a play on ideas questioning literally, how far women have come in the 21st century— the actual condition of women in contemporary society— and what women elect to post as status messages on their Facebook "walls."

I'm investigating the intersection of culture, art and technology as well as notions of class, territory and access. Although the social networking process seems open and democratic, it is ultimately controlling since, for instance, what one has to say, "What's on your mind?" is limited to a specific number of characters. In effect, one can share what's on one's mind, but only in a certain number of words. In spite of such limitations do women participate in social networking because it provides a sense of empowerment; and are profile pages viewed as virtual rooms of one's own?

These questions as well as the interactions, levels of participation, communities, collaborations & self promotion that occur on Facebook are intriguing and deserving of further exploration. 

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