Berger

by Sondra Rosenberg

Sondra Rosenberg is an artist and art therapist based in the Mt. Airy neighborhood of Philadelphia. She studied visual art at Oberlin College and earned her MA in art therapy at NYU. Working in a range of media and subject matter, she creates art for both personal expression, private commissions, and in support of organizations that promote social justice and community development. Her art practice has been informed by her work as an art therapist for women with eating disorders and related mental health struggles. She is interested in the fixed visual expression of shifting mental and emotional states and the ways in which interiors are revealed through surfaces. Estranged explores patterns of familial estrangement through a double self-portrait as sisters with contrasting personal styles. The wallpaper in the background contains the repeated symbol or code for epigenetics, or inherited trauma. The layout, colors and title font are meant to mimic the appearance of a young adult book cover from the 1980s, reproducing an aesthetic that is cheesy and haunting. I was inspired to paint Surfacing by making stamps of my body in the steam on the shower door and marveling at how elemental it looked. Seeing it made me feel ancient, like my female body carried a history and lineage that was potent and undeniable. The process of creating this piece was fraught with fear and shame, as I made contact with and honored aspects of myself I had long denied. What emerged was my vision of divine, embodied femininity. The Things John Berger Can't See was inspired by a moment in the 2016 film “The Seasons of Quincy” about the wonderful artist, writer and cultural critic John Berger. His “Ways of Seeing” series revolutionized the way so many of us see and understand art. I have often wished, while in a museum or gallery, that I could see the work through John Berger’s eyes. In the film, there is a moment when he is taking part in a conversation about how policies are beholden to business interests. There is a moment where he is trying to think about how this could be otherwise, and he covers his eyes. The gesture was incredible to me because it underscored how much knowing and seeing were inextricable to him. He could not ‘see’ an alternative.