As a woman living in a patriarchal society, I am especially interested in issues of authoritarianism, hierarchies, outmoded value systems, and how to effectively change what no longer serves. I seek to find a way to revisit the female figure in oil painting, while aware of my own biases having grown up and existing in this same culture.
I am asking my viewers to ponder this conflict - should the white god-man dictate how women are seen and represented?. Can women be represented with the full beauty of their bodies in plain sight independently of the patriarchal limitations imposed throughout history? Must women hide their bodies as the only expression of agency in response to our misogynistic culture? Is the denial of feminine beauty another form of sexual repression? Another form of control of unwieldy feminine emotions and passion?