12.14.12 – The Forgetting of Air

Oil on Canvas

“Gazing at the beloved, the lover reduces her to less than nothing if this gaze is seduced by an image, if her nudity, not perceived as endlessly pulsating, becomes a site of disguise rather than of astonishment at something that moves, unceasingly and inwardly.”
–Luce Irigaray

You know, I never thought of myself as a Feminist, mostly because growing up in an immigrant family means you quickly learn your place in the tribe and don’t worry about these things. But lately, I realize that I’ve been making art with feminist undertones and I’m 100% proud of that. I mean, I’m not about to bash some guy’s head in at a bar for talking about the last crazy chick he slept with, but I think there’s a lot to be said about the fact that most people can’t even name three female visual artists in history. Go ahead, try naming three, right now.

Anyway, I started painting my latest painting and wanted to make it all rosy and colorful, but to no one’s SURPRISE: it came out all creepy.

This one is in reference to the male gaze, or really, just conflict of power and vulnerabiity in our view of ourselves and other women. It would be way too simplistic to assume that women are only victims in the exchange, but in the exchange there is a beauty that we take for granted. Hope you like it.