“I have a pretty specific way that I put these things together and they do function as a tight narrative for me, but I don’t expect that to penetrate perfectly for somebody else.”
—Matthew Barney

Field Emblem Cremaster 3 Flag

Barney is an extremely deliberate artist. Everything that happens in his work, happens for a particular reason. Nothing is arbitrary. He is inventing a world with a language and set of symbols to go with it. For instance, in Cremaster 3 the tartan fabric specially woven for Barney’s costume incorporates the colors blue, red, and apricot, to symbolize veins, arteries, and skin.

One recurring symbol is an ellipse with a horizontal line bisecting it: –0–. It appears as the basis for an insignia or logo in all five films. As a pictograph, it represents the artist’s notion of self-imposed restraint over an organic system. Named the Field Emblem, it signifies the orifice and its closure. Barney sees human biology as a kind of contest with the environment; like a traditional heraldic emblem the Field Emblem encapsulates and translates the artist’s complex symbology into visual shorthand. But the Field Emblem also functions like a corporate logo, ensuring a certain brand identity by virtue of its constant presence in the work.

Each Cremaster episode has its own colors and customized emblem superimposed on the Field Emblem.

Cremaster 1: The winged Goodyear boot with a small silver funnel added to the toe.

Cremaster 2: A heraldic arrangement of the beehive, (the state insignia of Utah and a Mormon symbol) the American and Canadian flags and the dates 1977 (the year of Gilmore’s execution) and 1893 (the year of the Columbian Exposition).

Cremaster 3: A Masonic coat of arms with a double-headed eagle and the Chrysler Building.

Cremaster 4: The Arms of Man or Manx triskelion (three identical armored legs revolving around a central axis).

Cremaster 5: A stylized fleur-de-lis.

• View the emblem from Cremaster 3. How many symbols can you identify? How many have you seen before and in what context? Discuss the possible meanings for assembling these symbols together. If you are visiting the exhibition, how many of the symbols in the emblem can you relate to the Cremaster 3 portion of the museum installation?
• Each Cremaster film has its own color scheme. For Cremaster 3 the colors are green and orange, the colors of the Irish national flag. What associations do you have with these colors? If you are visiting the museum exhibition, describe how the colors of the emblem become part of the Cremaster 3 installation.
• If you are visiting the exhibition, take note of how many times, and in what contexts you see the Field Emblem repeated.
• Do you think it necessary to understand the artist’s meaning in a work of art in order to appreciate it?

Study the use of symbols and icons in 20th-century advertising. Through an internet search assemble examples of various contemporary symbols and logos. Analyze the “messages” that each symbol conveys through its shape, color, and imagery.

Research the imagery, colors, schemes, and words contained in national, state, and local flags. To what historical events, beliefs, and people do these symbols refer?

In the emblem for Cremaster 3, Barney layers and integrates symbols from more than ten different sources into one cohesive design. Using either traditional or digital media, create your own personal logo, corporate seal, banner, heraldic emblem, or flag. Integrate your initials with abstract shapes, images, design, and color to portray an aspect of your personality, interests, hobbies, and/or aspirations. Be prepared to discuss your choices.

Barney makes many references in his work: to historical figures, events, sites, artists, and philosophies. Some may be familiar, but many are more obscure. Choose a reference from the following list and research that topic as it refers to a specific Cremaster episode:

Cremaster 1–Busby Berkeley, Leni Riefenstahl, Goodyear Blimp

Cremaster 2–The Columbian Exposition of 1893, Gary Gilmore, Harry Houdini, Mormonism, the life of bees

Cremaster 3–The Chrysler Building, Richard Serra, Hiram Abiff and Solomon’s Temple [Freemasonry], Saratoga Race Track

Cremaster 4—The Isle of Man, Loughton Ram

Cremaster 5–Ursula Andress, Greek tragedy, grand opera

How does your research influence your interpretation of Barney’s work?