From the 70's: A series of work entitled Individual Mythology (1974-77), drawings, photographs, offset prints of myself, -using as roll models of woman artists- modeled on Isodora Duncan, and other dancer's photographs. The other offset series entitled (Közhely szimbólumok) Symbols of Commonplace, (1976-77), deal with the political influences on everyday reality in Hungary.
Selected works from the 80's, when I worked with the scientific representation of nature and the human body. Working with issues of discontinuity thinking in particular the women position. A series of photographs (starting from 1983) of displays in different 18th and 19th century science, medical, and technological museums. The photo-series entitled Dystopium infinite (1983- is ongoing). Also love letters to scientific instruments and similias of 18th century scientific instruments. In My pseudo-persona Edith Simpson 1983-1986), a fictional woman scientist born 200 years prior to my birth. (inspired by the 17th century English woman scientist, Anna Convey Finch.) My research between 1983-1990 resulted a series of installations in which, I employed different sculptural techniques and materials: glass, iron, lead, plaster, porcelain, The series of work titled Adventure in technos Dystopium, assembled under different subtitles : Natural Philosophy (1988), Morbid Conditions (1989), Fragmenta Naturae (1990). Natural philosophy analyzes the rationalist scientific method of construction "reality", that might given unity to a form of experience defined by individual observation. Fragmenta Naturae woks with Linnaeus taxonomy of plants in which the study of botany, naming specifying defining nature via projected social model - especially in the "sexual system of plants"- wowing the fabric of patriarchal language. The installation entitled Morbid Conditions concerns 18th and 19th century scientific, medical representation of body. In The Pathological Body deconstructs the scientific discourse of disease, health and duality's of imposed power over the magnified body. The selection of work from the 80s was exhibited in New York at the Tom Cugliani Gallery, and several one-person exhibition and group shows Cepa, Buffalo (1988), Arch Gallery, Amsterdam (1989), Alternative Museum New York, New Museum, New York, Kansas City Art Institute (1989), Ernst Museum, Budapest (1990), Hans Knoll, Vienna (1990) Tom Cugliani Gallery (1988, 1989, 1990), Richard Anderson Gallery, New York, (1990). And reviewed in New York Times (1988, 1989), in Village Voice (1988), in Art in America (1988, 1989), Contemporanea (1988), and Tema Celeste (1988) The critical interest continued: ArtForum (1989), Artscribe (1989), Cepa Journal (1989), SevenDays (1990), Arts (1990) and gained some interest in Holland too. Beelding (1989), Forum (1990), Works from the 90s titled, Manufacturing the Self. The series of installations exploring the history of the creation the consciousness of SELF in different cultural, racial, gender, historical and geographical situations. This work based on my experience, a cultural displacement. The installation series mixes traditional techniques with found objects and photography and used the genre of love letters instead theoretical text. The Manufacturing the Self is the governing title of the series of installations, that deals with the historical production of selves (19th century Self, 1993), (Medical Venus, 1993, Body Self, 1993, 1994, 1995, Convent, 1993) cosmetical (Hairy Virgin 1994). (Young and Beautiful 1997) Manufacturing the Self ; Body Self is takes on the body as a concept linking the physical organism to social order, political consciousness, moral development and identity. The Hairy Virgin an other installation within the Manufacturing the Self series, is an ongoing investigation of the production of female identities in history connecting Medieval narratives and contemporary cosmetic practices. The work from 90s is selected from the installations that was exhibited at the Bologna Museum of Contemporary Art, Italy (1990), The Renaissance Society Chicago, New Museum, New York (1991), Tyne International, Newcastle, England (1993), Sydney Biennial, Sydney (1992-93), Sao Paulo Biennial, Brazil (1994), Art Pallas in Budapest (1995), and Ludwig Museum, Vienna (1998, 99), at Ernst Museum, Budapest (1990), Gemente Museum, Arnhem (1991), Musee Des Beaux Arts de Nantes, France (1995). and from several one person gallery exhibitions in New York and Vienna, Zurich, Budapest, and Amsterdam. And was reviewed in Forum (1990), Agenda (1993), New York Times (1993), Village Voice (1993), Profil (1994), Die Presse (1994), Wiener Zeitung (1994), Lapiz(1994), Balkon (1995, 96), Art and Text (1995), ArtForum (1995), Art in America (1993), Muveszet (1990, 1995), Balkon (1997, 98, 99, 00). Orshi Drozdik In the 70s At the beginning of the 80s I started to work with the scientific representation of nature and the human body. At the beginning of this decade and half long work I traveled all over the world and taking thousands of photographs of displays in different 18th and 19th century science, medical, and technological museums. This photo series was inspired by Tyler Museum in Harlem, Boerhaave Museum in Leiden and the old Vrolic Museum in Amsterdam. This photo-series entitled Dystopium infinite started in 1983- is ongoing. I also wrote love letters to scientific instruments and made similias of 18th century scientific instruments. In 1986, I invented my own pseudo-persona Edith Simpson , that of a 18th century woman scientist, born 200 years prior to my birth. I "produced" her body of work, developed her imaginary scientific discoveries and created scientific instruments for her, inspired by the 17th century English woman scientist, Anna Convey Finch. My research between 1983-1990 resulted in a series of installations in which I employed different sculptural techniques and materials: glass, iron, lead, plaster, porcelain, (the same materials I'd found in the scientific museums) along with black and white photographs and texts. In my installations I offered a skeptical critical analysis of science's attempts to model reality asking power establishes itself and how "rationality" creates "truth" and "order" within existing power structures. My work look up issues of discontinuity, thinking in particular, the woman's position, and the horrific pleasures layered in institution, knowledge, how order seduces, excludes and equivocates. Under the governing title Adventure in technos Dystopium different installational aspects of the work was assembled under different titles: Natural Philosophy (1988), Morbid Conditions (1989), Fragmenta Naturae (1990). Natural philosophy analyzes the rationalist scientific method of construction "reality", that might give unity to a form of experience defined by individual observation. Fragmenta Naturae works with Linnaeus's taxonomy of plants in which the study of botany, naming specifying defining nature via projected social model - especially in the "sexual system of plants"- wowing the fabric of patriarchal language. The installation analyses the manner in which scientist and theorists of the rationalist Age of Enlightenment modeled their studies of universal phenomena on man himself. Man, the gender, not human kind served as the microcosm from which to measure and analyze perceivable reality. The installation entitled Morbid Conditions concerns 18th and 19th century scientific, medical representation of the body. In The Pathological Body I worked with scientific discourse of disease, health and duality's of imposed power over the magnified body. These works was greatly inspired by the writing of Michael Foucault. The work has aroused substantial critical interest with reviews in New York Times (1988, 1989), in Village Voice (1988), in Art in America (1988, 1989), Contemporanea (1988), and Tema Celeste (1988). The critical interest continued: ArtForum (1989), Artscribe (1989), Beelding (1989), Forum (1990), Cepa Journal (1989), Seven Days (1990), Arts (1990). I also participated in several one-person exhibitions and group shows in Cepa, Buffalo (1988), Arch Gallery, Amsterdam (1989), Ernst Museum, Budapest (1990), Hans Knoll, Vienna (1990) Tom Cugliani Gallery (1989, 1990), New York, Richard Anderson Gallery, New York, (1990), Gemente Museum, Arnhem (1991), List Visual Art Center, MIT (1992). In the 1990s I started to develop a new aspect of my work with a new title, Manufacturing the Self. That series of exhibitions of my installations explores the history of the creation the consciousness of self in different cultural, racial, gender, historical and geographical situations. My experience, of a cultural displacement enabled me to understand a process which I call Technologies of the Self which became the overall title and theme of a new body of work. The same time I use the genre of love letters instead of theoretical text, in order to pursue a subjective, personal voice. This work is based on my earlier deconstructive research, but deploys different concepts and visual formats, in particular the addition of a more personal voice and sculptural elements cast in, metal, wax, bronze and rubber. I was particularly interested in how we are structured to create/manufacture ourselves into standard social identity by social, economic and politic forces. The Manufacturing the Self is the governing title of the series of installations, that deals with the historical production of selves (19th century Self, 1993) and with intellectual, emotional (Medical Venus, 1993, Body Self, 1993, 1994, 1995, Convent, 1993) and cosmetically (Hairy Virgin 1994). The formations of Body Self, was based on earlier research in science museums, especially medical museum displays. Its central element is the Medical Venus, an 18th century anatomical wax-model made by Susini for medical studies. This embodiment emblematizes of cultural archeology, the female body under the scrutiny of the medical gaze. I cast my own body as a Medical Venus, nine years after I took a series of photographs of that sculpture in the Viennese Medical Museum. The body of the anatomical wax model began in the imagination of the sculptor Susini. To it I added a measure of the ecstasy of dissection released by the absence of the dissector. The rubber-casted life size sculpture surrounded with love letters engraved into silver plates. In them the dissected body confesses its love for the absent dissector. But the Medical Venus is not about the body, it addresses eroticism that, emerges in an art form cough up in discourse and that comes through in a piece of art which deals with medical discourse and representation. Manufacturing the Self ; Body Self takes on the body as a concept linking the physical organism to social order, political consciousness, moral development and identity. The female body is not abstract; it is an object of scientific gaze. The Hairy Virgin an other installation within the Manufacturing the Self series, is an ongoing investigation of the production of female identities in history connecting Medieval narratives and contemporary cosmetic practices. In the 90s I have been extending my career, participating in 'Art in the Nineties' at the Bologna Museum of Contemporary Art, Italy (1990) and in exhibiting at the Renaissance Society Chicago, New Museum, New York (1991), Tyne International, Newcastle, England (1993), Sydney Biennial, Sydney (1993-94), Sao Paulo Biennial, Brazil (1994) and Art Pallas in Budapest (1995). I have also had one person exhibitions almost every year in New York and at galleries in Vienna and Zurich. Solo museum exhibitions included: Ernst Museum, Budapest (1990), Gemente Museum, Arnhem (1991), Musee Des Beaux Arts de Nantes, France (1995), Ludwig Museum, Budapest (1996). My work has been reviewed in Forum (1990), Agenda (1993), New York Times (1993), Village Voice (1993), Profil (1994), Die Presse (1994), Wiener Zeitung (1994), Lapiz(1994), Balkon (1995,1996), Art and Text (1995), ArtForum (1995), Art in America (1993).