Audrey Flack - Macarena of Miracles

Photorealism

Macarena of Miracles. 1971.
Oil on canvas, 66x46" - The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Macarena of Miracles is one of Flack’s many still-life paintings of the 70’s, and indicative of her use of existing sculptures and architecture and making them the subjects of "immaculate illusionist paintings" (Gouma-Peterson 63).
Macarena of Miracles is a painting of a sculpture in Seville which is very important to a local church. The sculpture was done by a woman artist named Luisa Roldan (Flack 32). This work is one of the many manifestations of the Great Goddess of the 1970's which were sought by feminists and other people dissatisfied with male-centered mythologies. Though Flack isn't blatant in her dissatisfaction with tradition, her works of female goddesses are poignant (Gouma-Peterson 63).
This work presents a very idealized image - smooth, porcelain cheeks. Flack included the many adornments and accessories which were present on the statue - she believed these to be part of the statue. The statue is loved and adored, and Flack tried to include that emotion in the work (Nemser 271). It is also suggested that this work is "a portrait of a mother's sorrow, a portrait of spiritual devotion, and, in a very real way, a portrait of the artist herself." Flack was sent a postcard of the Macarena statue by a friend who said the statue reminded her of Flack. This deeply affected the artist, who searched out to experience the statue firsthand. When scultping Macarena of Miracles, Flack did so as an an ideal of herself, a self-conscious portrait (Pace 305).
What strikes me most about this work are the tears in the eyes of the statue. They are not present in the statue itself, and they seem to depart a little from the idealized face and complexion. They give the work a greater sense of emotion, and it is easier to see the power this statue has over it devotees. I also find interesting Flack's discussion of kitsch versus Classicism. Though Macarena is indeed an artificial icon, she is scultped with human attributes and is beautiful in this way.