Stop Their Silence

Empower. What does the female body represent in our society? Why can a hair strand kill? Yes, what is happening in Iran is one of the many reminders of our misguided perception, but let’s not forget it in a few months. Let’s cling to it. Let’s make a difference.

This ex hibition series challenges our societal expectations. It starts by raising awareness about a current issue and progresses through conceptual shows of standards to my personal experience with them. I continue by presenting the issues they pose and finish by confronting their origin: fear. I conclude by questioning our perception of complex fears. Creating a standard is complex, but, because of that, we have all the information we need to tear it down.

Collision

What happens when we leave the standards, expectations, and perception of a female body lifeless? We become nothingness. We submerge and unite. We become one, yet we lose ourselves.

It Comes and Goes in Waves

We are sailing in a sea of weapons we craft, drowning in the expectations we unconsciously create for ourselves and the ones around us.

The song Waves by Dean Lewis inspired this painting. The verse It comes and goes in waves reminded me of how our expectations change as time goes by. Our standards change as our society progresses. They go back and forth in time, but they never lose their importance or their effect on our mental health.

Pink

The pink bear, the guitar, the slipper, the perfume my mom bought me when I was nine. They are now rotting in the basement. Pink defines so much of the standard a young girl should reach: cute, girly, sweet.

Color is a form of expression, not repression.

Perfection

I distinctly remember my ballet teacher’s yell. The high pitch silenced the whole room with a single phrase: “You’re not yet perfect” Who or what defines perfection?

Chaos

Changing ourselves always leads to chaos, but how are we supposed to deal with our own image when each person in our life has their own expectation of us? We either struggle and fail to change ourselves or, if we succeed in building our perfect statue, we live in constant fear of its breaking.

Body Signs

We are so concerned with touching the standard, that we are oblivious to the actual issue: our health. Our body is constantly signaling its real flaws, but, only after a diagnosis do we start noticing.

What Are You Scared Of?

I fear predators, both physiological and physical, so I challenged myself to look them in the eye and reproduce their power. As I was drawing them i realized: shouldn't they be afraid? Aren't I the one shaping their very form right now?

Power

Let’s take fear one step further. Realism. Our fear just became a detailed creature staring at us. It is coming to life from the page.

Or maybe it's standing back. Maybe it fears me now.