A Edward D. Wood, Jr. [To Edward D. Wood, Jr.]

Claudia del Río addresses the ideology imbedded in everyday objects designed to appeal to the female consumer. The photographs are of soaps commonly employed in Argentine households to wash clothes by hand, usually with the help of a wooden board. The collaged figures offer an ironic commentary on how the brand names, that sought to highlight the soap’s strength, were defined in ways that were traditionally male. Thus, “leña,” Spanish slang for “beating,” features boxers, while “tigre” and “perdiz” [partridge], are accompanied by armed hunters. Other bars make a more direct appeal to women, using names such as “modelo” [model] and “espuma” [foam], which the artist illustrates with idealized female figures. By linking the name federal with the military and “radical” with guerilla warfare, del Río also points out the subtle sense of violence encoded into everyday objects. The artist sent this work of Mail Art to the Blanton Museum of Art, and dedicated it to Ed Wood, the famous U.S. director of notably bad B movies, perhaps in reference to camp and popular culture.