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A striking photo by Julio González was exhibited at the Casa del Carnaval in Cádiz, Spain.

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The woman and the mirror by Julio Gonzalez

”The woman and the mirror” is an assemblage sculpture made by Gonzalez in 1936-37. He didn’t have a design for this piece and his style is often described as “drawing on air” as he bends, cuts and welds iron together, in a seemingly random way to create it into an assemblage. Gonzalez plays around with the human form in this sculpture, and we can see hints of what might be an arm, face, feet etc which he shows in an abstract, non-traditional way. The pieces of iron fused together, however, seem quite thin and almost fragile, playing on the idea of a traditional female. Yet this is juxtaposed, as the assemblage is made from iron, which is a strong and industrial material, challenging the idea of a “traditional” female- which is delicate and fragile. Gonzalez could be conveying a message; that females are strong and powerful but are undermined and seen as delicate. He depicts the woman holding a mirror, seemingly preoccupied with her beauty and charm. This almost portrays the woman as an object of beauty, again, this is a traditional view of a female. The femininity is also shown in the movement of the figure, which is highlighted by the sudden changes in direction, especially on the top half of the sculpture, however it still has an elegance to it. The fact that your eye is drawn up through the sculpture and ends with the mirror, shows the importance of it in this piece. Gonzalez may be trying to show the importance that society places on beauty, and how it can be all consuming, as the figure seems to be contorted around the mirror and it can be seen from all angles of the sculpture.

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