Charlie Stein, Awakening Health (Grace & Grace)

For the work Awakening Health (Grace & Grace) (2020), Stein uses the nursing robot Grace, which is used to care for the elderly. Represented in the piece as young, blonde, petite women, Grace and Grace embrace, giving each other support. The deeply human gesture raises the question of the extent to which the concept of nurture - also a stereotype associated with femininity - is at all relevant to robots. Based on the assumption that women appear more trustworthy and subordinate, their form is often favored for machines intended to serve humans. As a result, they reflect the gender stereotype of the young, attractive, and obedient woman. In her works, Charlie Stein reflects on this archetype and pulls it out of its servitude. By making them the focus of her portraits, she grants them autonomy.