Mixed Media
Working on the “Speak” exhibit encouraged me to steer toward social commentary. I have always looked for a genuine way to incorporate a social message into my own paintings. A couple of months ago I was engrossed by the memoir of Leymah Gbowee, ” Mighty Be Our Powers.” In short she tells this amazing story of how she went from a poor single mother to peace activist. She was instrumental to mobilizing women to end the civil war in her native country of Liberia. In the book Gbowee mentions this ancient curse found in several traditional African societies when a married or elder woman strips her clothes. The man who beholds the naked body is shamed and cursed. In some societies the curse has serious social ramifications such as the loss of property and the inability to marry. I was completely tantalized by this idea. This painting is the product of my fascination with the female body and the power it wields.