Judy Dater
American, b. 1941
Vickie Singer, 1986
Silver gelatin print, 20 x 16 inches; Gift of Clive Getty 2011.1
Judy Dater’s work explores women’s roles, strengths, and vulnerabilities, while her uninhibited representations break down the restricted thinking of beauty and the ideal attraction of the female form. Vickie Singer, who was married to Mormon activist, John Singer, who was killed in a standoff with the Utah state officials in 1979. Taken two years prior to her incarceration following a second compound standoff, Singer holds a small version of the “Flag of the Kingdom of God,” in front of which as she stands. It was modeled after Old Glory and is a replica of the one flag carried by Mormon pioneers. It hung at the Singer compound, the site of these standoffs, and where this portrait was taken.