Ghost World (2001)

Illeana Douglas: Roberta Allsworth

Photos 

Quotes 

• Roberta : Did you actually do this painting?

  Enid : Well, no, it's more of a found art object.

  Roberta : And how do you think this addresses the subject of racism?

  Enid : It's complicated. I guess I'm trying to show how racism used to be more out in the open and now it's hidden or something.

  Roberta : And how do you think an image like this helps us to see that?

  Enid : Um, I'm not sure. I guess because when we see something like this, you know, it seems really shocking and we have to wonder why it's so shocking.

  Roberta : I don't really know what to say, Enid. I think it's a remarkable achievement.

• Roberta : I think that Phillip and Enid can help us to see that there are many different ways we can express ourselves. We can do things like these cartoons, that are amusing as a sort of a light entertainment, or we can do work that is more serious in scope and feeling and that deals with issues - emotional, spiritual, political - of great importance.

• Roberta : [after showing her weird short film to her art class]  That piece is entitled "Mirror, Father, Mirror". I like to show it to people that I'm meeting for the first time because I think it says so much about who I am and - what it feels like to inhabit my specific skin. And *this* is exactly what I'm hoping to get from each of you over the course of the summer - a picture of your own self-exploration.

• Roberta : [looking at a drawing of a man smashing another man's head in with a sledgehammer]  What can you tell us about your piece, er... Phillip?

  Phillip : Er... it's about The Mutilator.

  Roberta : [smiling]  My goodness!

  Phillip : It's a really great video game about a guy who kills people with a big hammer.

  Roberta : Oh. I thought maybe this was supposed to be your father.

  [she gives a little laugh. Phillip looks confused] 

• Roberta : [in Art Class, the teacher is asking about their homework: create a piece of art that responds to something you have strong feelings about. She spots a wire sculpture made from two coathangers]  Who is responsible for this?

  Margaret - Art Class : I am.

  Roberta : Talk to us about it.

  Margaret - Art Class : It's my response to the issue of a woman's right to choose. It's something I feel super-strongly about.