Bride’s Cake ~ Bride’s Book, 1973

Penny Slinger :: From ‘Bride’s Book’, pages 1 & 2, 1973. | src Penny Slinger

Bride’s Cake series

Working on the body of work on food and eroticism that was shown in my 1973 Opening exhibition at the Angela Flowers Gallery, I wanted to create myself as a wedding cake/bride as an art piece presented as a photographic series. I designed and made a construction/costume which I could wear/sit in. It had a removable slice so I could mimic the ceremonial cutting of the cake. It was both parody of a wedding ritual, and recreation from a woman’s point of view.

I posed alone and with a man friend of mine playing the part of the groom, and then my girlfriend acting the part, dressed in a suit. A knife and a life cast of a penis (dildo) were used interchangeably.

From the series I created a Bride’s Book as a facsimile of the traditional wedding album, but much more radical and outrageous in its use of imagery. I collaged various elements, both onto and into the photographs and on the surrounding album page. I printed up a number of the photographs at different sizes and made collages with selected images on various related themes. (quoted from Penny Slinger)

Penny Slinger :: The First Slice. From ‘Bride’s Cake’ series, 1973. | src Penny Slinger
Penny Slinger :: Rosebud. From ‘Bride’s Cake’ series, 1973. | src Penny Slinger
Penny Slinger :: Promised a Bed of Roses. From ‘Bride’s Cake’ series, 1973. | src Penny Slinger
Penny Slinger :: ICU. From ‘Bride’s Cake’ series, 1973. | src Penny Slinger
Penny Slinger :: All Seeing I. From ‘Bride’s Cake’ series, 1973. | src Penny Slinger
Penny Slinger :: Book cover. From ‘Bride’s Book’, 1973. | src Penny Slinger
Penny Slinger :: From ‘Bride’s Book’, page 23, 1973. | src Penny Slinger