Mixed Media - title
Title : The Love Embrace
Medium : Found object/mixed media Date : May 2022 Size : Exhibition Text :
I created this piece to highlight nature and creation, and how it is often overshadowed and pushed aside by society. Inspired by Frida Kahlo, I wanted to pull from her symbolic uses of nature, and her feminist viewpoint on life. I used primarily found objects, wanting to create a piece of of things that were discarded and turn them into something new. I referenced many of the elements in Kahlo's work, including the nature, hands, and planets, to create a work of my own.
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Inspiration :
My inspiration for this piece was Frida Kahlo's painting "The Love Embrace of the Universe, Myself, Diego and Senor Xolotl." This painting, along with a majority of Kahlo's works, center herself as the main subject. I was originally drawn to this piece for my comparative study, another project I am working on. In the comparative study, I am looking at pieces that center around uplifting women and women's rights. In this painting specifically, Kahlo is shown holding her husband at the time, Diego Rivera. She interacts with him in an almost maternal way, holding him like one would a baby. It also shows other female figures holding her, then another holding them all. This shows the way Kahlo views women as creators and as the foundation of the world and universe. When looking at this, I really love the peaceful feeling that it gives off. There is no obvious conflict, only a depiction of women being what holds the world together, despite the negative stereotypes held up and pushed onto society at the time of it's creation. Kahlo was an avid supporter of women's rights and made a lot of efforts towards advocating for them. In my own sculpture, I want to reflect this idea of uplifting female voices and showing how we are vital for a successful society. Though I am creating a sculpture and not a painting, I want to include some of the same elements that are shown in Kahlo's painting, such as the hands, greenery, and planets.
From a technical standpoint, there are a lot of techniques and effects that I would like to replicate from Kahlo's work into my own. In a lot of her paintings, Kahlo uses earthy, muted colors and has a lot of visualization from nature, such as animals and plants. I want to use a similar color palette in my work, with the idea of "mother nature" or a similar figure in mind. I like how cohesive and consistent it makes her pieces look, as opposed to lots of bright colors that are overwhelming and loud. I want to portray a peaceful and calming scene, which these colors help to execute. I also really like a lot of the nature she shows in her work, as seen in the painting on the right, "Self Portrait with Thorn Necklace and Hummingbird." In this painting, she uses things like leaves, animals, and branches to explain her message of staying strong through struggle, especially as a woman. I really want to include these elements, but in a more physical form since I am creating a sculpture instead of a painting. I'd also like to pull the hands in "The Love Embrace of the Universe" piece, and combine it with the muted color palette and nature elements. Overall, I want people to see my art and see how Kahlo's artwork is reflected within it, from a physical and metaphorical standpoint.
Planning :
Having never made any type of sculpture before, I wasn't exactly sure where to begin with the planning. I thought that the best place to begin would probably be in sketching, so this is what I did first. I had a general idea of what I wanted going into this, so I started by drawing this out. I knew I wanted to include hands, planets, and plants, similar to "The Love Embrace of the Universe" piece. I started by playing around with different ways to pose the hands, usually with them able to hold or hang something with. I also wanted to make note of ideas I had as far as materials go. For the hands, I was thinking of making molds of my own hands and casting them in plaster. For the planets, I thought it could be cool to use resin and preserve real plants and flowers within it, showing the beauty of nature in a way that wouldn't wilt or die. I also thought a lot about how the sculpture way going to stand, if at all. If it were to stand on the ground, I came up with ideas that would make it look like it were growing out from the ground, covering the bottom of the hand with grass and roots to give that appearance. Another idea I had was to find a planted or some sort of pretty container from a thrift store or something similar, and make it appear like it was growing from this. I liked both of these, but also wanted to explore the idea of creating something that would hang. I really liked the idea of hanging planets from the hand similarly to how puppets are held from strings. If I were to do this, I would need to find a way for the sculpture to either hang from something above or stand, since the hands wouldn't necessarily touch the ground or whatever it is stood on.
I eventually made a decision on the piece I wanted to make, and it was the one with the "puppet" hands. I wasn't sure how exactly I was going to suspend the two hands, and explored a lot of different options. The first thing I came up with was hanging them from the ceiling or something above. This wasn't super efficient though, since it would need to have a pretty permanent installation as most ceilings don't have conveniently placed hooks to hang the hands up. My next idea was to have two separate pieces that intertwine together, but can be displayed on their own. To do this, I would attach the wrist of each hand to a canvas or some sort of base board. From each hand, there would be planets hanging, sort of like they were being held like strings on a puppet. I wanted the board to either be a mirror or a painting sky, sort of like the sky in Kahlo's painting. I really like the contrast between day and night or good and bad, so I want to reflect this in my own piece. If I were to have used a mirror, I was planning on breaking one and adding grime to it, to make it look old and worn, while the other would be very clean and in one piece. If I were to have done the sky, I would have painted the board in the same way as the paintings, one light and one dark, and found some sort of thick, glossy finish to make it look sort of magical. I really liked the idea of having two pieces that faced each other and interacted with each other, but I had no easy way of displaying them the way I wanted. They would need to be on walls that face each other and are very close together, which is not something that I would be able to find very easily. With this in mind, I kept the idea of the two hands facing each other and came up with the idea of using a box instead.
Once I had the idea of a box in mind, I was pretty set on doing this. The way I would use the box is very similar to how I would with the two boards to hold the hands up, with them being in an enclosed space as opposed to in the open. I would have one hand on each side, with the planets hanging from them. In order to keep Kahlo's contrast between day and night, while still including an element of nature, I would have the dark side slowly transition into the lighter side. To cover the "seam" of the hand attached to the box, I would have things like grass, leaves, and flowers growing around them and have vines growing up and around the arms. As far as the box goes, my plan was to go to thrift and antique stores and look for something old that would be the right size. I also really liked the idea of something old and seemingly without much value could become something new and beautiful. I also wanted to have doors on the box, so I was open to looking for old boxes, display cases, cabinets, etc, and I made sure to look for doors and boxes separately so I had more options. On the outside of the box, I wanted to cover it in fake plants, vines, and moss. I wanted it to look old and grown over, and then be able to open it to something lush and lively. I went back and forth between whether or not I wanted windows, and eventually came to conclusion that I would let it come down to what I could find, and not go into it with any sort of expectations. I think both could look great, and it just depends on the materials available. I thought about building a box on my own, but I think the idea of making a piece out of found objects and things that are already created makes the piece more powerful.
The last bit of planning that I went through was the idea of adding a lighting element to the piece. I thought it would be really cool to have some sort of internal lighting that could illuminate the piece and highlight certain aspects. At first I was thinking of some types of more direct lighting, like having a mini spot light kind of thing, but thought it would be too harsh and difficult to conceal. Instead, I really liked the idea of creating an effect that mimicked stars in the sky. Since I was planning on a sky backdrop, I thought adding stars that actually lit up would have a really cool effect, while also giving the piece soft back lighting. In addition to having the lights in the back, I also played with the idea of having them come out of the door. If I were to do this, I would have the more direct lighting on the inside, but when it is closed, have the box almost project stars onto the space around it. I liked this idea in theory, but again came across the same struggle as before with harsh and very obvious lights. Instead, I went back to the stars in the sky idea. My plan with this was to create a fake backboard that fit into the box, which is what would be seen while looking in. I would drill lots of tiny holes into it to mimic stars, and then have the light come from behind it. To add the lighting, I would first take some sort of LED lights, either a couple bigger ones or longer strings of fairy lights, whatever gives the strongest and most consistent light, and glue them to the very back of the box. I also needed to find a way to switch the lights on and off, but found that it would be easier to experiment with that later and just get the general idea down first. After these are attached and the on and off is accessible, I would glue/install the fake back piece with the star holes in it. When this was done, it would hopefully be able to show the stars and give off a soft light to the piece. From here, I was done with planning and ready to start on the final piece!
Process :
LIGHTS :
The first step I needed to take was to install the lights, as I wouldn't be able to once the other elements were in place since there would be things in the way of the backboard. I tested two types of lights, which were LED strips and a string of "fairy lights." I eventually landed on the light strips, as they were much brighter and could be turned on and off with a remote, not only the battery pack. I used hot glue to attach the strips, going around the edges of the back of the box, and then on a diagonal through the middle with what was left over. The lights are battery powered, so I hid the battery box behind a piece of wood that had originally held up smaller storage containers within the bigger box. Eventually, I plan to cover it with the fake plants, but make it still accessible to use the switch and change the batteries.
After this, I had to create the backboard with the star cutouts. To create this, I used a very think foam poster board, and cut it down to the size of the inside of the box so I would fit in the back. It didn't need to be perfect and the edges were a little jagged and messy, but I plan to cover this up later anyways. Once it was snug enough to stay put on its own, but not so tight that it couldn't be removed to put back, I started poking the holes. At first, I used a screw looking tool on a pocket knife, but it wasn't very consistent with going all the way through the board and it looked pretty messy. Instead, I found a very small drill attachment and drilled the holes instead. This was much fast and looked a lot better since they were more even in size and more consistently poked the holes all the way. I went back with a slightly larger attachment to create some variety in the star size, and the base of the backboard was finished.
The first step I needed to take was to install the lights, as I wouldn't be able to once the other elements were in place since there would be things in the way of the backboard. I tested two types of lights, which were LED strips and a string of "fairy lights." I eventually landed on the light strips, as they were much brighter and could be turned on and off with a remote, not only the battery pack. I used hot glue to attach the strips, going around the edges of the back of the box, and then on a diagonal through the middle with what was left over. The lights are battery powered, so I hid the battery box behind a piece of wood that had originally held up smaller storage containers within the bigger box. Eventually, I plan to cover it with the fake plants, but make it still accessible to use the switch and change the batteries.
After this, I had to create the backboard with the star cutouts. To create this, I used a very think foam poster board, and cut it down to the size of the inside of the box so I would fit in the back. It didn't need to be perfect and the edges were a little jagged and messy, but I plan to cover this up later anyways. Once it was snug enough to stay put on its own, but not so tight that it couldn't be removed to put back, I started poking the holes. At first, I used a screw looking tool on a pocket knife, but it wasn't very consistent with going all the way through the board and it looked pretty messy. Instead, I found a very small drill attachment and drilled the holes instead. This was much fast and looked a lot better since they were more even in size and more consistently poked the holes all the way. I went back with a slightly larger attachment to create some variety in the star size, and the base of the backboard was finished.
SKY/STAR BACKGROUND :
To begin the background, I first placed the backboard into the box to see how it looked with the lights. They definitely shined through the holes, but I could pretty clearly see the outline of the light strips in the back, which I wanted to avoid if possible. To do this, I painted the entire backside black, which didn't have to be precise, only act as a barrier of sorts from the light. After this, I began painting the front! Since I was basing the entire piece off of Kahlo's painting, I wanted the background to reflect the sky in the original. On the left side, I stuck with much darker colors and on the right, lighter colors. The only thing I wasn't including was the planets, since those will hang from the hands once everything is finished. I started by adding a base coat of the darker valued colors on each side, not paying much attention to the details quiet yet. From here, I worked lighter to add in the clouds until it eventually looked similar to Kahlo's painting, at least in terms of color and subject matter. I didn't want to copy her style directly, but I did want to make the connection between the two very clear. At this point, I needed to blend the two sides together, and to do this I looked a lot at Kahlo's work and how she made it look like the clouds were almost merging together. The paint layers covered up a lot of the stars, so I did end up going back and drilling through all of them again, but it wasn't too difficult since I could still see where they were. Once these looked finished, I put it back into the box to test it with the lights. Since I had added so many layers of paint, plus the paint on the back, the light strips shined through a lot less and could mostly only be seen through the stars. |
HANDS :
I struggled a lot with the hands, and will mostly go over it in the experimentation. I was originally planning on making a mold of my sisters hands and then casting them in plaster. I made a box out of cardboard and tape that seemed pretty secure, but when I started mixing the molding gel into it, one of the walls burst open and spilled it everywhere. I didn't have enough time or materials to try it again, so I had to come up with an alternative. What I ended up doing was buying two wooden pose-able hand models, which would normally be used for decoration or drawing reference, and used those instead. They were about the size I needed, and although it wasn't what I had originally planned for, I ended up liking how they look. After I got a hold of the hands, I had to pose and paint them. They held the pose super well, so I didn't need to glue anything, and I painted them first. I tried a couple different painting methods, but ended up with one that worked really well for me. I mixed the color that I was working with, which were heavily inspired by Kahlo's work, so either a dark, warmer brown for the left, and a light, almost white color for the right, and watered it down so it was very thin. I also added an acrylic pouring medium to add some transparency, which is something I do when I want to add a sort of glazed effect in my paintings. I then took a folder up paper towel and dipped it in the paint, and then sort of scrubbed it on the wood, kind of like if I were to stain it. I wanted to achieve very specific colors, which is why I used paint instead of an actual wood stain, and also wanted to keep the texture and color variance of the wood. This staining technique worked really well, and was a lot less messy and much more even then when I had originally tried to paint it. I made sure to move all the joints around and get into all the crevices that I might have previously missed. Once all the painting was done, I posed them both just in case the paint would make it more difficult to move, and let them dry. After they were dry, I made sure they were posed exactly how I wanted, and then added floral wire, fake moss, and fake flowers growing up the side, as I wanted to include the nature elements of Kahlo's work. I wanted it to look like it was growing out of the base/wrist of the hand, so I started them here and had it work its way up, wrapping and growing around them. |
GREENERY :
One of my main goals was to make the inside of the box look almost like an environment of its own. To do this, I used fake moss and plants. Before putting the backboard in place, I glued moss to the border. I did this to hide the seams of the board and the box, as some of the lights still showed through the sides. After this, I put the board in place and started with the actual box. I glued more moss to the entire bottom of the box, apart from where the battery pack would be. I glued moss onto the battery pack, and put it on the empty space where it was now mostly hidden. I then used fake flowers and other plants onto the moss, wanting to make it look more natural. In addition to this, I glued moss onto the edge edge of the hands before they were attached, and then more afterwards, making it look sort of feather out and growing from the sides. Once the main greenery was in place, I just added some final details and was done.
One of my main goals was to make the inside of the box look almost like an environment of its own. To do this, I used fake moss and plants. Before putting the backboard in place, I glued moss to the border. I did this to hide the seams of the board and the box, as some of the lights still showed through the sides. After this, I put the board in place and started with the actual box. I glued more moss to the entire bottom of the box, apart from where the battery pack would be. I glued moss onto the battery pack, and put it on the empty space where it was now mostly hidden. I then used fake flowers and other plants onto the moss, wanting to make it look more natural. In addition to this, I glued moss onto the edge edge of the hands before they were attached, and then more afterwards, making it look sort of feather out and growing from the sides. Once the main greenery was in place, I just added some final details and was done.
PLANETS :
To make the planets, I used 5 clear, plastic spheres in varying sizes, the largest in the middle with them getting smaller as they went out. I had originally thought about using resin, but very quickly dismissed this once I realized how much it would cost. To add the color, I painted the from the inside to keep the glossy finish on the outside of the sphere. I had to make sure the colors were accurate the first time since I was sort of layering backwards, so I practiced on some of the extras beforehand. I mixed the colors I wanted, which were based off of the planets in Kahlo's painting, and got to work. I made the small and medium planet on the left side the light, white color that is shown in the painting. Once these planets were dry, I put them together and prepared to assemble them in the box. I used clear string and tied some onto each planet from an attachment on the sphere that I think were originally meant for hanging them as ornaments. Lastly, I hung them in size order from the hands.
To make the planets, I used 5 clear, plastic spheres in varying sizes, the largest in the middle with them getting smaller as they went out. I had originally thought about using resin, but very quickly dismissed this once I realized how much it would cost. To add the color, I painted the from the inside to keep the glossy finish on the outside of the sphere. I had to make sure the colors were accurate the first time since I was sort of layering backwards, so I practiced on some of the extras beforehand. I mixed the colors I wanted, which were based off of the planets in Kahlo's painting, and got to work. I made the small and medium planet on the left side the light, white color that is shown in the painting. Once these planets were dry, I put them together and prepared to assemble them in the box. I used clear string and tied some onto each planet from an attachment on the sphere that I think were originally meant for hanging them as ornaments. Lastly, I hung them in size order from the hands.
Experimentation :
This piece required a huge amount of experimentation, and I had to change a lot of my plans along the way because of it. The main issue and experimentation that arose was when I was attempting to create mold of my sisters hand to cast in plaster for the final piece. Before attempting the final product, I did a smaller test version with just a little container of the molding gel, and it worked as I had planned. The problems occurred when I started with the final mold. In order to save space and only use the amount of molding gel I needed, I created my own box by tightly taping pieces of cardboard into a box that was just big enough to fit my sisters hand and arm. I made sure it was very tight and fully sealed, and assumed it would work as directed. As I began pouring the molding gel power and water however, things started to go downhill. While I was mixing the gel together, which I had to do with a very big mixing stick, the box started to come apart. I'm assuming it was due to the pressure of the mixing and the weight of the gel, but a lot of it ended up spilling out and curing before it was usable. Because of a lack of time and not enough materials to make two more molds as I had planned, I had to make a decision about how I would continue on. Pretty early on I came up with a backup plan just in case something like this were to happen, and I'm super glad I did. I ended up buying two wooden pose-able hand things, which are usually used for decoration or drawing reference. I have one in my work space, which is how I got the idea. I was able to get a hold of the hands very quickly, thankfully, and I was able to continue as planned.
Another thing I had to experiment with was also with the hands, but how I was going to color them instead of how I was going to make them. Originally, my plan was to just paint them a solid color based on the colors in Kahlo's paintings, but once I tried it I didn't love how flat the colors looked. It was also really difficult to get a thin enough layer of paint in the joints that the color was there, but not too thick that the joints would be "glued" in place and unable to move. Instead of this, I wanted to try sort of staining it. I wasn't exactly sure how to go about this, but started by adding a thicker layer of paint and then washing it off with water. This was definitely a mistake, since the wood warped a little and the joints became very hard to move, but it was really the only way to get all the paint off, and it was still able to move enough for what I needed. My next strategy ended up being what worked the best, and I stuck with the staining idea. I took the same color of paint from before and watered it down until it was super thin. I used a paper towel and rubbed the paint into the wood, staining it while keeping the wood texture. This worked super well, and I continued with this technique until I had both hands done. I had to pay very close attention to the joints, making sure I moved them around and got into all of the sockets so it wouldn't look incomplete. It didn't need to be perfect, especially with the lighter one since it was closer to the original wood color, but I tried to get it as close as possible. I eventually posed them and let them dry, and they were colored exactly how I wanted them!
Another thing I had to experiment with was also with the hands, but how I was going to color them instead of how I was going to make them. Originally, my plan was to just paint them a solid color based on the colors in Kahlo's paintings, but once I tried it I didn't love how flat the colors looked. It was also really difficult to get a thin enough layer of paint in the joints that the color was there, but not too thick that the joints would be "glued" in place and unable to move. Instead of this, I wanted to try sort of staining it. I wasn't exactly sure how to go about this, but started by adding a thicker layer of paint and then washing it off with water. This was definitely a mistake, since the wood warped a little and the joints became very hard to move, but it was really the only way to get all the paint off, and it was still able to move enough for what I needed. My next strategy ended up being what worked the best, and I stuck with the staining idea. I took the same color of paint from before and watered it down until it was super thin. I used a paper towel and rubbed the paint into the wood, staining it while keeping the wood texture. This worked super well, and I continued with this technique until I had both hands done. I had to pay very close attention to the joints, making sure I moved them around and got into all of the sockets so it wouldn't look incomplete. It didn't need to be perfect, especially with the lighter one since it was closer to the original wood color, but I tried to get it as close as possible. I eventually posed them and let them dry, and they were colored exactly how I wanted them!
Critique :
Similarities May Include :
- The symbolism of hands used to show the creation of life. In both pieces, hands are used to display the idea of life and creation, as they are holding onto and have plants growing out of them, and in Kahlo's case, people within them. The viewer is able to interpret this in many ways, but I see it as the embrace of a mother or caregiver, and the idea that those who create life give love without always expecting anything in return.
- The warm and natural color palette. In both artworks, a similar color palette is used to enhance the idea of nature and the natural world. Had cooler colors been used, the message would seem colder and more negative. Because of the warm colors, nature and life and creation are seen in a happy, positive manner, and as something that makes the world better.
- The use of nature and plants to portray the meaning. In either piece, plants are used as a representation of life on earth and in the universe. Plants are one of the basis's of life and they are what provides food and shelters to many species. Because of this, it shows how plants are vital to life, and without them, we would not be able to live the way we do. All of this stems back to the idea of society destroying life and creation, especially with the current climate crisis.
Differences May Include :
- Kahlo's piece uses the female figure to portray her message, whereas I do not. For Kahlo, the idea of womanhood and women being the core or creation and the universe is shown through her depiction of herself and other woman holding her and being the source of everything around her. In my piece, I wanted to show the message of women being looked down upon in society, while still being the creators through a box that is unassuming on the outside, but lively and lush on the inside.
- Motherhood takes a very different form between the pieces. In Kahlo's piece, motherhood is a pretty large contributor to the message and ideas that she is trying to show. To her, women are expected to take on a motherly role, even with their husbands and adult male peers, but are not given anything in return. In my own piece, I focused less on motherhood and more on the idea of life and creation as a whole, and how women are often boiled down to their ability, or lack thereof, to reproduce.
- A very obvious difference between the pieces is the mediums. Kahlo uses oil paint for her piece, and is able to hone in on the warm colors and rich values to portray life and nature. In my own piece, I wanted the found objects to be just as important as the final product. I thought a lot about the idea of creating something new and beautiful out of things that would otherwise be thrown away, similar to the way women are often set aside as soon as their ability to have children is threatened, instead of allowing for their abilities outside of that to shine through.
Reflection :
During the process of this piece, I learned a lot and gained a lot of new skills. I went out of my comfort zone to try things that I never had before, and I think it is reflected in the final product. One main skill that I had to learn to create this piece is taking found objects and a lot of different mediums and putting them together to create one cohesive work. A lot of this process took place before actually starting the piece and when I was looking for objects and supplies. For example, I tried to make sure all the fake flowers that I got from thrift stores were in the same general color palette and a similar size. I didn't want them to look out of place, so I made sure they went together outside of the piece before putting them in. I also did this when I was painting the planets and background, as I took a lot of inspiration from Frida Kahlo's piece. I kept checking back at her work to make sure the general color palette was similar and the connection between the pieces was clear. As an artist, I was able to develop in the sense that I gained a new appreciation for things that would normally be thrown away, but can be turned into something new. I've never really worked with found objects before, so this project helped me to think outside of the box and find ways to repurpose the supplies that I used. My inspiration for this piece was the painting "The Love Embrace of the Universe, Myself, Diego and Senor Xolotl." In this painting, Kahlo depicts herself among women that represent the world and the universe, and it speaks to the fact that woman are the core of creation and life. I attempted to portray a similar feeling, and build upon it to talk about how life and nature is often thrown away by media and society, and then their worth being broken down to their ability to reproduce. To do this, I wanted the outside of the box to be broken and worn, and the inside being lush and lively. My favorite part of this piece was definitely adding the lighting system to the back. I wasn't exactly sure how to execute it at first, but once I was able to, I really enjoyed it. I was really glad I was able to add another element to the piece to add more interest and something to just enhance it as a whole. As soon as I thought of the idea to add lights, I was stuck on it and I'm really glad I didn't let it go. It's my favorite part visually as well, because I think it's what the piece needed to add something new and interesting. I also just really enjoyed the process of the sky as a whole, since I was able to paint it and then add in the stars in a very unconventional way. My least favorite part of the process was making the hands. Although I'm happy with how they turned out and I'm glad I was able to make a compromise, I really wish they could have turned out the way I had originally planned. I struggled a lot with working the molding gel and plaster even before the container burst open, so just the entire process was difficult. Sometime I would really like to go back and find another way to go about it, but for now I have to settle with what I have. In conclusion, I am pretty happy with how this turned out and I hope people can see the work that I put into it. I want viewers to be able to interact with the piece and understand the thoughts I had while creating it, and I hope they enjoy it just as much as I enjoyed making it!
ACT Questions :
Clearly explain how you are able to identify the cause effect relationship between your inspiration and its effect on your artwork?
My inspiration had a large impact on the creation of this piece, largely in the meanings and ideas I wanted to get across. I focused in Kahlo's feminist views on life, and how she viewed motherhood and creation as both a blessing and a curse, something that on one hand can create something beautiful, but on the other hand can cause the creator to be outcast once they can no longer create.
What is the overall approach the author has regarding the topic of your inspiration?
Frida Kahlo was an avid advocate for women's rights, and this reflects in her artwork. She believed that women deserve the same as men, regardless of the culture she was surrounded by at the time.
What kind of generalizations and conclusions have you discovered about people, ideas, culture, etc. while you researched your inspiration?
Although women are highly valued as mothers and caretakers in many societies and cultures, they are still treated as less then their male counterparts. Gender discrimination is an issue all around the world, even if women a huge part of the reason the human race has continued to survive for so many years.
What is the central idea or theme around your inspirational research?.
The idea surrounding my inspiration is the idea that women are the foundation of our world and universe, even though they are not treated as such. Without women, our world would not exist, and Kahlo highlights this idea in her work.
What kind of inferences did you make while reading your research?
The medium of a piece is just as important as the final project. In using found objects, I was able to bring life back to objects that would otherwise be thrown away, similar to how women are treated in media and society as soon as their "worth" has run out, whether that is through their ability to have children or their willingness to continue with something they had previously worked on.
My inspiration had a large impact on the creation of this piece, largely in the meanings and ideas I wanted to get across. I focused in Kahlo's feminist views on life, and how she viewed motherhood and creation as both a blessing and a curse, something that on one hand can create something beautiful, but on the other hand can cause the creator to be outcast once they can no longer create.
What is the overall approach the author has regarding the topic of your inspiration?
Frida Kahlo was an avid advocate for women's rights, and this reflects in her artwork. She believed that women deserve the same as men, regardless of the culture she was surrounded by at the time.
What kind of generalizations and conclusions have you discovered about people, ideas, culture, etc. while you researched your inspiration?
Although women are highly valued as mothers and caretakers in many societies and cultures, they are still treated as less then their male counterparts. Gender discrimination is an issue all around the world, even if women a huge part of the reason the human race has continued to survive for so many years.
What is the central idea or theme around your inspirational research?.
The idea surrounding my inspiration is the idea that women are the foundation of our world and universe, even though they are not treated as such. Without women, our world would not exist, and Kahlo highlights this idea in her work.
What kind of inferences did you make while reading your research?
The medium of a piece is just as important as the final project. In using found objects, I was able to bring life back to objects that would otherwise be thrown away, similar to how women are treated in media and society as soon as their "worth" has run out, whether that is through their ability to have children or their willingness to continue with something they had previously worked on.
Citations (in MLA Format)
The love embrace of the universe,the Earth,myself,Diego and Senor Xolotl,1949. The Love Embrace of the Universe, the Earth(Mexico), Myself, Diego and Senor Xolotl, 1949 by Frida Kahlo. (n.d.). Retrieved May 11, 2022, from https://www.fridakahlo.org/the-love-embrace-of-the-universe.jsp
Self-portrait with Thorn Necklace and hummingbird, 1940. Self-Portrait with Thorn Necklace and Hummingbird, 1940, By Frida Kahlo. (n.d.). Retrieved May 11, 2022, from https://www.fridakahlo.org/self-portrait-with-thorn-necklace-and-hummingbird.jsp
Self-portrait with Thorn Necklace and hummingbird, 1940. Self-Portrait with Thorn Necklace and Hummingbird, 1940, By Frida Kahlo. (n.d.). Retrieved May 11, 2022, from https://www.fridakahlo.org/self-portrait-with-thorn-necklace-and-hummingbird.jsp