Author(s)

Liwen Ao ¹

Affiliation(s)

¹ Xi'an Academy of Fine Arts, 100 South Hanguang Road, Yanta District, Xi'an, Shaanxi, China

Corresponding Author

Liwen Ao

ABSTRACT

This text examines contemporary feminist artist Kiki Smith's rebellious reinterpretation of Western traditional fairy tale "Little Red Riding Hood", focusing on several artworks that center on two archetypal characters "Little Red Riding Hood" and wolf as central protagonists. Through meticulous analysis of these works, this study argues that Smith constructs an alternative narrative framework that unfolds along two intertwined conceptual trajectories: dissolution of boundaries and emergence of relational symbiosis, thereby destabilizing deeply rooted binary oppositions, especially those separating humans from animals, women from nature, and articulating a vision of cross-species ecological integration that resonates with contemporary feminist theory, particularly epistemological turn in ecofeminism. Therefore, symbolic reconciliation between "Little Red Riding Hood" and wolf is not merely narrative revision, but it represents convergence point between contemporary feminist artistic practice and broader transformation of feminist epistemology, while simultaneously projecting an ideal vision of harmonious, pluralistic and non-hierarchical ecological coexistence.

KEYWORDS

Kiki Smith; Feminist Art; Ecofeminism; Western Contemporary Art

CITE THIS PAPER

Liwen Ao. The Fairy Tale of "Little Red Riding Hood": Ecofeminist Artistic Practices of Kiki Smith. Art and Performance Letters (2026). Vol. 7, No.1, 43-50. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.23977/artpl.2026.070108.

REFERENCES

[1] Ji, Xiuming. A Theoretical Retrospect of Ecofeminism, Chinese Experience, and Narrative Implications. Shandong Social Sciences, 2023(2), 69–77.
[2] Weitman, W., Smith, K., & Sussman, E. Kiki Smith. New York: The Museum of Modern Art, 2003.
[3] Liu, Xing. An Interview with Kiki Smith in Numéro China: The Witch Has Not Been Asleep. Numéro China, 2018(1–2).
[4] Young, A. Kiki Smith, Lying with the Wolf [EB/OL]. Smarthistory, August 9, 2015. Available at: https://smarthistory.org/kiki-smith-lying-with-the-wolf/.
[5] Wei, Qingqi, & Li, Jialuan. Ecofeminism. Beijing: Foreign Language Teaching and Research Press, 2019.
[6] Warren, K. J. Ecofeminist Philosophy: A Western Perspective on What It Is and Why It Matters. Lanham: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, 2000.

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