Senga Nengudi

A.C.Q. - Fandango

Senga Nengudi’s multi-part A.C.Q. (Air Conditioning Queen) sculpture is constructed from a metal fan and nylon pantyhose. The work’s contrasting materials explore themes of gender; the industrially produced, metal objects exude masculinity while the delicate fabric of hosiery is intimately linked to the female body.

Nengudi uses nylons that have been donated second hand because, as she states, they have a “residual energy of what it means for a woman to wear these objects.” The work’s rigid and inflexible metal components symbolize the harsh trials and monumental milestones of a woman’s life in a male-dominated world. The resilient flexibility of the pantyhose illustrates the ability of women to endure hardships and be shaped by triumphs.

Nengudi is also a dancer, and these sculptures are constructed with an exquisite tension that simultaneously suggests the physicality of a string instrument and the endurance of her own body. The name Fandango is a play on words, referencing both the metal fan and the Spanish dance which the hosiery seems to emulate.