Amy Smyth
she/her
The Fabric of Feminine
'Be wary of these men— their love is not the same as their respect'.
The realism and romanticism of Renaissance and Tudor-era portraiture, depictions of women and femininity- painted with softness and poised chastity. Regardless of the role of virgin, mother, mistress, maid or muse, women were subject: property, without autonomy. Feminist activism has afforded me a life of agency and privilege unimaginable to historical women, although I often sense echoes of this archaic dystopia.
Today in the Congo, Sudan, Afghanistan, and countless other places, women and girls live this experience, terrorised and abused freely, stripped of autonomy and human rights. However, the current global political climate hangs in a precarious balance: America, the UK, Ireland- media, television, foreshadowing very potential realities.
Everyday, I become more concerned that history is destined to repeat itself: the depiction of the muse, contorted and controlled by the painter. This project aims to respect the legacy of women in art, but also as a catalyst- a contribution to a modern-day Renaissance.