A Queer Eye for the Veil: Homonationalism and Orientalism

Jon Henry

This essay will first examine the artist’s exploration of the subject of the female body, as a single figure, in pairs, or in groups, in the works on view in this exhibition. A careful visual analysis of Les Femmes du Marco # 1 and Les Femmes du Marco # 2 will provide an overview of the artist’s approaches to her subjects. Second, the essay will offer a revised reading of Essaydi’s work through the lens of queer theory. This approach offers new insight into the artist’s work and in our overall understanding of the Orientalist tradition in European and American Western art and its new reiterations.

Lalla Essaydi’s Work

A Closer Look

Voyeurism

Homonationalism & Orientalism

Queer Perspectives on Essaydi’s Work and the Orientalist Tradition

Bibliography and Suggestions for Further Readings

Click here for a .pdf of the entire essay by Jon Henry.