Women in Art 2017: Can You Feel the Shift?

Join us at the Women in Art 2017 Opening Night on March 4, at 16:00 hrs curated by Leda Maria Prado and hosted by the Ward Nasse Gallery in Soho, NYC.

Although, this venue provides a platform for women artists who remain underrepresented in museums and galleries, it is so much more to me.

It is a platform for feminine energy.

I realize gender to be a profound part of who I am and suspect it greatly influences how I respond to life.

However, I also feel a deep awareness far beyond male and female energy. A duality that emanates an energy of its own.

I have witnessed genders alienated and estranged from each other.

Although media has swamped us with images of beauty and sexuality, the real and true intimacy has eroded somewhat.

Today's teenagers' relationships and courting practices clearly indicates a form of estrangement which I worry about.

Whisper , Mixed Media 36x48

World news report people of power (yes, you got it, I said 'people' ...) attempting to further obliterate the feminine energy in a last desperate grasp to power and control. I am so happy I am witnessing that this menace has only further enhanced our collective awareness of the need for balance, the need to speak our hearts' truths, where ever it may lead us, if we are to survive.

This shift in consciousness is operating in the world as we witness a call for acceptance, respect and love, qualities no longer tied to one gender alone.

Men role models in powerful positions are finally speaking from their hearts, without shame or their masculinity being challenged.

As for women, it will take time and compassion for us to heal.

Waterways , Mixed Media 36x48

Perhaps the greatest violence I have suffered, the deepest wound that needs healing, as a woman, is the one I inflicted upon myself.

As I was encouraged to behave more like a man in order to succeed in the business world, my former life, I complied.

I became the part. I hid my feminine energy, thereby denying the true nature and essence of who I was.

No wonder I was no longer truly at ease with neither my femininity nor myself for that matter.

My Sacred Place , Mixed Media 48X72

Creating art has brought me back to the core of who I am.

My heart and feminine energy which resurface strongly in my paintings, are operating a shift in my reality.

My ability to connect deeply with others and to empathize has returned.

As I am speaking my truth through my art, I take pride in my work and allow my heart to express itself in full view. It s the scariest thing I have ever done.

Learning to Breathe Again, Mixed Media 30X30

As I look at women demanding a safe place to breastfeed, as I witness strong young women celebrate their pregnant bodies on the stage, in all of their glories, as young entrepreneurs choose to wear pink in boardrooms, and more importantly, true leaders of the free world are refusing to partake in racism, bigotry and gender biases, then I know,.... the feminine energy, in all of us , is finally taking its place in the world.

Together, men and women, hand in hand, we can all become factors of change. One day, hopefully in the near future, will the feminine energy be featured in art exhibits which will showcase

both men and women under the rightful title of "Art of Hearts".

Playing with Butterflies, Mixed Media 48X72

Would love to hear your views on this subject and welcome your comments below.

Thank you,

C hanTal l

Organizations That Advance The Status of Women : A number of organizations, amongst others the WMG and AWA of which I am a proud member, are dedicated to making a positive difference and as presented in this great article by Renee Phillips, curator and art critic, raise awareness on equality and balance, thereby making a positive difference in the world.

http://renee-phillips.com/organizations-that-advance-the-status-of-women-artists/

Upcoming events which celebrate Women Artists:

Women In Art 2017: Ward Nasse Gallery: March 1 to March 15 (http://www.wardnasse.com/upcoming-shows.html)

Stronger Together: Celebrating Women Artists: Women Made Gallery : March 10 ( http://womanmade.org/exhibitions/)

Her Story: Manhattan Arts International : Now : ( http://www.manhattanarts.com/herstory-exhibition-2017/ )

Of the many articles written about gender bias in the artworld in 2016, I find this one particularly insightful:

https://priceonomics.com/just-how-big-is-the-gender-gap-in-fine-art/