Manekinen (Mannequins, 1934)
Manekinen collection is a subtle and ironic criticism of the state of society – the world of goods and advertising where objects become autonomous, mass produced, alienated from human agency. The border between what is real and what is represented (in the shopping windows) is blurred – women in public spaces resemble the mannequins in the shopping windows, not the other way round. Mannequins are the walking dolls in the street, and people feel more mechanic than their copies. The commodities shout at you, they want to seduce you and want you to look like themselves.
Vogel speaks of the visual spectacle of commodity and of the role of women in public sphere – emancipated women are now allowed to walk the streets but they are subjected to logic of capitalism and mass produced fashion. They depend on this and loose their independence.
While walking the streets of Lviv during our Summer research trip, we were drawn to the orchids in the windows wherever we went. Those omnipresent orchids and mannequins in Lviv of 2016 made us reflect on Vogel’ Lviv of 1934.
