La histérica (The hysterical one), from the series Las histéricas, by Feliza Bursztyn, 1967–69

Feliza Bursztyn, Artist
La histérica (The hysterical one), from the series Las histéricas , 1967–69

Medium
Stainless steel scrap, motor
Dimensions
43 5/16 × 20 1/2 × 18 1/2 in. (110 × 52 × 47 cm)
Credit Line
Private collection, New York

For her series Las histéricas, Feliza Bursztyn assembled and soldered strips of steel that had been discarded by factories. The histéricas move about thanks to a rotating motion produced by the motor of a turntable of the sort common at the time. The title of these works is ambiguous. Is it meant to be ironic, or does it reinforce the patriarchal perspective of Freudian psychoanalysis, which has applied the word hysteria solely to women and their sexuality? In either case, the series questions medical classifications of women.

En su serie de Las histéricas, Bursztyn ensamblaba y soldaba tiras de láminas de acero que desechaban en las fábricas. Las histéricas se sacuden a causa de la rotación del pequeño motor de un plato giratorio de la época. Las obras crean ambigüedad debido a su título: ¿Son irónicas o reafirman la perspectiva patriarcal del sicoanálisis freudiano que ha nombrado a la histeria como una característica únicamente femenina relacionada con su sexualidad?  En todo caso, esta serie pone en cuestión la clasificación médica que se aplica a las mujeres.