Abstract

This thesis examines the reviews of Christine Pflug's exhibition of doll paintings at the Isaacs Gallery from May to June 1964 and uncovers the gendered politics behind the art discourse surrounding the critical interpretations of Pflug's works. I consider how the reviewers establish the painter as a mother and housewife, suggesting that she produces in a domestic sphere, thus removing her from a gallery context. At the same time, they connect Christiane Pflug to the painted image of the black and white dolls which are shown in an interior environment and placed against altering land- and cityscape views. This thesis also examines Pflug's experience as a German immigrant woman in Canada and relates the reviews of her works to the social environment in Toronto during the sixties, focusing on the changing position of German and Caribbean females. In my opinion, Christiane Pflug's doll paintings offer a shifting perspective of reality and capture the experiences of a woman transient who moves from place to place, constantly switching locations and gaining a new outlook on life.