Diluted paint and fabric on calico. 120 cm x 150 cm
My artwork is inspired by the early 20th century Bijinga genre Japanese artworks. The lady on my calico art piece represents how she feels empty without her beauty. She is an empty shell, a mannequin for the view of other people. If she is not beautiful then what’s the point? She will inhabit another shell. With expensive clothing from the finest tailors, even the people of Japan reject her “feminine beauty”. Opinions and low whispers fed her mouth with a sour taste. Her eyes dissolve to try and escape seeing everyone’s judging stare. She must run and find another shell. If a woman is not ‘pretty’, are they considered below men? Women are toys manipulated by society, a lifeless doll to be played around with. Society has a stereotypical beauty standard that is still normalised in society, no matter what television says.
