rwhb
Fall 2022
Real women have bodies. They have these bodies that they are born into, they didn’t ask to be. Real women have these bodies that are fucked with, literally. These bodies are manipulated into many different versions. People look at them, perceive them, whether or not those women want to be perceived. If someone recognizes some being as a woman, those people think they can yell at it, ask it stupid questions, made unkind demands from it, etc.
What does it mean to be a woman, really?
Real women have these bodies, they carry the body with them through everything. Is the body the default?
To be this idea of a woman I speak of, I believe there are standards that are passed onto us, in varying intensities. It could start with so many things, I don’t believe there’s a trail, but a pile. A pile thrown onto us from all angles. It consists of teeth, hair, nails, masking, figure, clothing, acceptance, grooming, and skin. Skin shows. I have portrayed these ideals through the use of cyanotypes with embellishments on Arches Watercolor Paper, Stonehenge Paper, found objects (pearls, a fresh razor blade, chains, and a makeup compact), a face mask, and a white Old Navy ribbed long sleeve shirt.
[Images by Stesha VanWye]
What does it mean to be a woman, really?
Real women have these bodies, they carry the body with them through everything. Is the body the default?
To be this idea of a woman I speak of, I believe there are standards that are passed onto us, in varying intensities. It could start with so many things, I don’t believe there’s a trail, but a pile. A pile thrown onto us from all angles. It consists of teeth, hair, nails, masking, figure, clothing, acceptance, grooming, and skin. Skin shows. I have portrayed these ideals through the use of cyanotypes with embellishments on Arches Watercolor Paper, Stonehenge Paper, found objects (pearls, a fresh razor blade, chains, and a makeup compact), a face mask, and a white Old Navy ribbed long sleeve shirt.
[Images by Stesha VanWye]