1986
Greer Lankton American, 1958–1996
Greer Lankton made lifelike doll sculptures modeled on friends and celebrities often staged in theatrical settings. Meticulously constructed and featuring extravagant costumes and makeup, the portraits are at once glamorous and grotesque, reflecting Lankton’s lifelong obsession with body image. She was a transgender artist and self-described anorexic and addict who considered her work autobiographical. “It’s all about ME,” Lankton wrote in a powerful poem-statement that emphasizes not only “indulgence” and “vanity” but also the artist’s sense of being “trapped in [her] own world.” Here the artist depicted performance artist Rachel Rosenthal with a haggard visage yet fiercely confident stance. The sculpture once served as a mannequin in the window of Einstein’s, a boutique in New York’s East Village.
Papier-mâché, metal plates, wire, acrylic paint, and matte medium