Abstract

This thesis analyzes 1970s photographs and photomontages created by Ewa Partum and Natalia LL (Lach-Lachowicz) that respond to concurrent political and cultural conditions in the Polish People’s Republic (PPR). Through photographic representations of the naked female body, Ewa Partum and Natalia LL activate a Polish feminist praxis that is adjacent to, but distinct from, Western feminism. The body becomes a tool that subverts static gender identities and provokes an embodied subjectivity. This thesis argues that Poland’s historical specificity informs how Partum and Natalia LL use their body, which in turn reflects Polish feminism. This position rejects contemporary claims by the Polish Roman Catholic Church and right-wing groups in Poland, while anchoring Partum and Natalia LL within the lineage of Polish feminists.

This thesis begins with an historical overview of the 1970s in socialist Poland to better understand the social and political context during which Partum and Natalia LL developed their artistic careers. With a specific focus on the artists’ early careers and select photographs from Partum’s Self-Identification (1980) series and Natalia LL’s Artificial Photography (1976) series, this thesis then considers two dimensions in the analysis of these works. The first dimension refers to feminist scholar Elizabeth Grosz’s theories of the body to understand how Partum and Natalia LL use their bodies from a philosophical position. The second dimension uses Polish feminist theorist Sławomira Walczewska’s discussion of 18th-20th century Polish feminist history and Agnieszka Graff’s reflections on the gendered implications of post-1989 Poland. Together, this approach creates a composite perspective that links the artists’ works with the body, feminism, conceptual art, and Polish modern history.