Sadie Benning's Me and Rubyfruit (1989)

When I was viewing one of Sadie Benning's debut works, Me and Rubyfruit, I forgot for a few minutes that she was just a teenager when she created it. I thought that it was such a powerful piece for a young lady to make. However, then I realized that it is her youth that makes this video so powerful. It is her raw thoughts, her amateur filmmaker status and skills, and her age that make this video what it is--slightly disturbing. It was definitely something that made me uncomfortable to be viewing, but that is what makes it so beautiful. If there is one thing I have learned in this class, it's that art should push the envelope. the pieces that I have found most striking in this class were the works that expressed the inner turmoil of the artist and that challenged the viewer to think a different way, or at least feel a different way.

Benning's video did just this. The black and white picture, with the crackling and popping of an "old" video recorder made this piece seem dark and extremely personal. The old records playing in the background made it feel like a poorly-shot home movie. In a way, that is what this video is, and that is what Benning intended it to be. She, a young girl that was forced out of school due to the homophobia she was encountering, wanted to let her audience into her mind., into her inner-dialogue. The way she wrote out some of the responses reminded me of a diary- a book of sacred and secret thoughts. She wanted to let her audience read her diary in hopes that it would help them understand that she is just as uncomfortable with her sexuality as they are, as society was at the time, and in some ways, still is.

All in all, I think this video accomplished exactly what Benning intended. It created tension, discomfort, and provokes thought and dialogue about the subject of sexuality.