"Made in her Image" Exhibition

Please join me for an exhibition of collages at The Ladder, 136 Bree Str, CT 4 May 6pm!

Made in her image ~ Nature was forged in her image. 

Made in her image refers to the Romantic cult of the sublime which I have termed Femromanticism, with the female form and nature as the focal point and the male gazing in awe of her.

Caspar David Friederich’s Wanderer above the sea of fog stands on top of her form like a great conquerer when, in fact, he is called to stop dead in his tracks, to be in awe of her.
JMW Turner paints as per her instruction, as her pigments spill out and happen on his canvas.
Unlike John Everett Millais’ Ophelia, who is at the mercy of the male gaze, Made in her image reinscribes the power to the female.

She is everywhere and in everything. The male gazer cannot look away or unsee her (lest he gouges his eyes out). The slope of the mountain is the nape of her neck. The ripples in the sand are the folds of her skin. Her belly kisses her thighs as she stoops down over the earth.
When nature is in full bloom, she says “Look at me”–it’s not an invitation, she is not passive in her request but rather she demands it of the viewer, instructing him to take her in. She is too wild to be tamed. She belongs to the elements.

I am reminded of her daily, especially in this city where its sea surrounds us at every angle and the mountains are our sense of direction."

Me and Norman by Steph Simpson