Spleen

Mivekannin reexamines the works of European male painters like Jean-Léon Gérôme or Eugène Delacroix, among others, who depicted the “Orient” through highly theatricalized scenes—harems, hammams, and other imagined settings—portraying women and subjects as eroticized objects of desire or symbols of subjugation. By engaging in an act of “citation” or “visual referencing,” Mivekannin meticulously replicates the ornate details of the original paintings, including their references to Islamic architecture, geometric patterns, floral motifs, and sumptuous textiles. However, he disrupts the captivating imagery with a bold subversive act: replacing the faces of the subjects with his own black-and-white self-portrait, gazing directly at the viewer. This direct gaze transforms the viewer into an active participant, compelling them to question the narratives of power and domination inherent in these depictions.