Cynthia Maughan in conversation with Nancy Buchanan and SE Barnet, Los Angeles, 2002

In this conversation, Maughan shares her video art background, starting with performance-based pieces using puppets, drawings, and still photos. She emphasizes the power of imagery and explains how stills can be manipulated to create movement. Her work has since evolved to include objects, particularly anthropomorphic ceramic figures, engaging with feminism and politics. Her early video work emerged from sound installations and a desire for creative control. Themes of death, suicide, and the representation of women featured prominently, often incorporating makeup, scars, bandages, and fake blood to address objectification. Over time, her work shifted from narrative-driven pieces to abstract explorations of static images and sound. Recent works use unsettling imagery—such as a baby blanket with a spider on it and the sound of a crying baby—to provoke discomfort.

Maughan recalls her involvement in the feminist art movement, exhibiting at the Long Beach Museum in the 1970s and having peripheral ties to the Women’s Building. Though her mother and grandmother weren’t explicit activists, she was raised with an expectation of equality. Her historical awareness led her to recognize feminism as a longstanding movement: “I probably realized that oppression was more prevalent and an integral part of the fabric of society.”

Political setbacks, particularly regarding abortion rights and ongoing debates over evolution and creationism, deeply concern Maughan. “We spend so much energy on these issues, problems that should have been solved long ago.” Despite progress, the need to fight old battles is frustrating. She reflects on history’s cyclical nature: “Every now and then, periods will resemble other periods… The interesting thing is recognizing the similarities and differences within a particular moment.”

The discussion shifts to pop culture, focusing on Britney Spears as an example of problematic media representation. Buchanan, SE Barnet, and Maughan discuss female representation, bodily autonomy, sexuality, and societal expectations—the contrast between empowerment and objectification, the rise of plastic surgery among teenagers, and corporate interests in commercializing young girls’ appearances. SE Barnet observes, “If women were truly empowered in society—and I don’t mean individual women aren’t—maybe some would still want breast implants…” The conversation concludes with reflections on empowerment, the fine line between self-expression and external influence, and the complexities of defining personal freedom in a highly structured and commercialized society.