Semiotics of the Kitchen

Martha Rosler, Semiotics of the Kitchen, 1975, single-channel video, black and white, sound; 06:09 minutes, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Museum purchase made possible by the Ford Motor Company, 2008.21.7, © 1975, Martha Rosler. Courtesy Electronic Arts Intermix, NY

Artwork Details

Title
Semiotics of the Kitchen
Date
1975
Copyright
© 1975, Martha Rosler. Courtesy Electronic Arts Intermix, NY
Credit Line
Museum purchase made possible by the Ford Motor Company
Mediums
Mediums Description
single-channel video, black and white, sound; 06:09 minutes
Classifications
Highlights
Subjects
  • Occupation — domestic — cooking
  • Architecture Interior — domestic — kitchen
  • Object — other — cookware
Object Number
2008.21.7

Artwork Description

In unsmiling deadpan, Martha Rosler parodies the role of the perfect TV housewife and cook. Running through an alphabet of kitchen utensils, she demonstrates each for the camera. Her gestures of hacking and stabbing are at times unnerving--thinly veiled expressions of frustration and rage. Rosler has said of this performance, "As the woman speaks, she names her own oppression."

A conceptual artist who has worked in many different mediums, including video, photography, and performance, Rosler made numerous pieces in the 1970s examining media representations of women's roles.

Works by this artist (3 items)

Benjamin West, Mary Hopkinson, ca. 1764, oil on canvas, Smithsonian American Art Museum, George Buchanan Coale Collection, 1926.6.1
Mary Hopkinson
Artist
Dateca. 1764
oil on canvas
On view
Benjamin West, Self-Portrait, 1819, oil on paperboard, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Transfer from the U.S. Capitol, 1917.2.3
Self-Portrait
Date1819
oil on paperboard
Not on view
Benjamin West, Helen Brought to Paris, 1776, oil on canvas, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Museum purchase, 1969.33
Helen Brought to Paris
Date1776
oil on canvas
Not on view

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Date2007
Polaroid Polacolor ER Land Film
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Nicholas Nixon, The Brown Sisters, Truro, Massachusetts, 2017, gelatin silver print, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Museum purchase through the Samuel and Blanche Koffler Acquisition Fund, 2018.1
The Brown Sisters, Truro, Massachusetts
Date2017
gelatin silver print
Not on view
Untitled, from the series Wagon Train
Date2018
pigment print mounted to dibond
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