The Freedom Trapped In A Woman's Body

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Pipilotti Rist - Ever Is Over All

In this video, we can observe how a woman (who is Pipilotti Rist herself), dressed in a blue dress and red shoes, is spinning and happily dancing, she clutches a huge flower in her hands, and literally in a split second we can watch how with the same tenderness and grace she breaks the windows of the car closest to her with the same huge flower, wielding it as her weapon.

This art video belongs to the famous Swiss artist Pipilotti Rist, who is famous for creating experimental art videos and installations in which she captures herself. Her works are often classified as feminist and described as surreal, intimate, abstract art focused on female physicality.

I want to start by saying that I chose this work because I believe that it shows very important problems of women that are still relevant. As a representative of the female sex, this interpretation, in this artwork, is very close to me. This is shown even in the smallest details of this video, starting with how freely, as if flying, Pipilotti moves in this artwork, I'll even say so, she interprets freedom herself, which seems to be imprisoned in a female body. She doesn't care what passers-by think of her, she doesn't care about the consequences of her actions, which is clearly shown in the scene with a policeman (a woman???) who smiles affably towards Pipilotti in response to her actions, as if sharing and understanding her pride and happiness.

We live in a world where women are forced to live in constant fear and oppression from society. How many times have we heard phrases in our address like: "you're not skinny enough”, ''you're not pretty enough”, "men like girls with long hair" etc. Women are trying to fit into these oppressive standards of beauty that society has imposed on them, for what? They destroy their bodies by sitting on an unhealthy diet, they do plastic surgery on their face and body, for the approval of society, but is this life? Are they happy? Is this freedom? No. And this is exactly the interpretation that I see in this work. I see how a gentle and weak at first glance woman, suitable for the imposed "beauty standards" of society, destroys the cars around her, which, as for me, interpret these standards and the framework of society, she breaks them, she destroys them.

In addition, I want to add that, in my opinion, the flower in the context of this work interprets the toxic interpretation of femininity that society has also imposed on us, since flowers are always associated with women, because presumably they are as fragile as they are. But not in Pipilotti's work. We see that the flower is not just huge, so it is also capable of smashing cars to smithereens, despite its "fragile" appearance.

This work will probably remain one of my favorites, as it is very close to me emotionally. I have never felt feminine enough, perfect, beautiful. Beauty standards drove me even more into the framework, now seeing how our society is developing, and how many interpretations of natural and real female beauty we have now gives me hope.