ARTIST STATEMENT
My work uses the language of thick oil paint to describe the visceral and fleshy qualities of exposed, neglected, discarded, and partially consumed fruit as a representation of the vulnerable and uncontrollable physicality of the human body. As a human, it can often feel that your body is an external object that is not within your control; that your physical being is prison or an enemy that is unpredictable and susceptible to outside forces of evil, deception, and disease. Rotten fruit has become a deliberate metaphor for me through linguistic research. To rot can, by definition, mean all manner of corruption. Fruit is often used in connection, spanning back to biblical times, with women, their sins, and sexuality, as well as their ability to produce life. The term fleshy is used only to describe fruit and the human body, often women’s bodies, which are deemed “soft and thick” just like the tissue of a fruit.
ABOUT THE ARTIST
Ann Dawkins is an artist from Louisville KY. She received her MFA from Southern Illinois University Carbondale in 2019 and her BFA from the University of Louisville in 2013. She was previously the Visiting Assistant Professor of Painting and Drawing at Oklahoma State University. Ann’s work has been shown nationally, including exhibitions in Denver, Dallas, Chicago, St. Louis, and several galleries in Louisville. In April of 2022 she had a solo exhibition titled “Fruit/Bodies” at Garner Narrative Gallery in Louisville KY.
© Ann Dawkins