When I was in art school I trained to be an illustrator. As part of this training, we drew a lot of people, both clothed and unclothed models. We did this every day we had classes for four years. We learned what men and women look like, and how to convincingly convey what we saw onto paper, canvas and into works of three dimensions.
At this time, we women were working, sometimes struggling, to be seen as individuals, and not simply one of a type of persons, undistinguished from others of a group. Over time, I have thought about the idea of being an individual, and also the idea of being one of many similar, and, perhaps to some people, replaceable female beings.
The pieces I have decided to show you here are examples of works I have done while thinking about this topic. The drawing skills I learned at that time are what gives me the ability to express my thoughts visually. I have continued this practice of drawing, using myself and others as my models.
A male friend once very seriously asked me why I choose to use female more than male figures in my work. My answer was that this is because I am female, and as a women I am interested in how I see life for myself and how I see myself and other women going about our lives.
