Bizzare Terminator Woman Sculpture

Sculptor Fan Xiaoyan has created several part woman, part metallic warrior pieces that I would not want to run into in a dark alley. Clearly the ‘Terminator’ movie franchise did not have the market on kickass half man/half machinery cornered.

Despite the overtly fetishistic quality of the sculpture with its pronounced sadomasochistic overtones normally associated with male fantasy, it is the work of a woman. This gives rise to interesting cultural and sexual issues, raising questions as to whether men and women project differing significations onto a visual artifact. Is the comment "It would have a completely different meaning if it had been made by a man“ justifiable? Does an object retain distinct significance due to original intent or does it attain independence once released by its creator? Is an artifact endowed with meaning by the viewer or by the artist? Whatever the answers, this is a remarkable work of art which would be hard to ignore on any level.