Thoughts on…
THE AVENGERS, 2021
75cm x 170cm, oil on canvas, framed
This triptych was made this year (2021) in response to my grief and rage at the ever-increasing stories of violence towards women, I no longer want to see women as victims. I want to see powerful, depictions of women, ones that inspire as well as terrify. I believe that our history of violence has created a monstrosity, one from which we find it hard to awaken from, let alone to find new directions away from. As a result, women’s voices still remain marginalized and disrespected. This seems to make even a discussion of equality between the sexes almost impossible.
I look back at art history and make new paintings which continue the conversations of Artemisia Gentileschi and Elizabetta Sirani , both female artists from the Baroque era. To move forward in our journey, I believe that we need to mourn, grieve, howl and kick in the hope that we may eventually forgive. These ideas are at the core of my work.
Left Panel
My way of releasing anger is to paint myself as a component of my painting, like the protagonist has come to life, then through empathy and imagination, I connect to my work. The colours on my body speak to the colours of the painting, and from the artists of the past to create new stories.
Centre Panel
This triptych is an imaginary amalgym of female avengers. They come from studying artists responses to male violence through the history of art; not a subject with plenty of material to choose from. I found myself tuning to female writers about this subject before the pandemic and then subsequently noticed how gendered the interest or response to this epidemic is.
I called this work ‘The Avengers,’ partly inspired by the TV show in the seventies with the same name. Having a female role model like Diane Rigg was exhilarating, she was so cool, sleek and untouchable. How important is it for girls to see someone they can look up to?
Artemisia Gentileschi and Elizabetta Sirani were two female artists whose work reflected their interest in responding to this issues, both Baroque artists from Italy.
Right Panel