ARTIST STATEMENT
My art is focused on catching the eye of the viewer right away, whether it’s the subject matter or the color scheme. I love painting portraits, as well as allowing my subconscious to lead me towards what colors I need to portray my message at the time. The piece “Judge Me” is a representation of the male gaze, and how its view of female sexuality lies in its polarization and assumptions, and for the bikini wearing subject to use this knowledge to her advantage. She’s a gorgeous, voluptuous woman, draped in cliche feminine colors and overpowering masculine colors. This woman can be absolutely anything. However, she’s only seen for the obvious and she knows that. I wanted to play off of the overused tattoo; “Only God can judge me” that is usually written across one’s chest. Instead her tattoo is simplified to “Judge Me”, as in to say “you’re going to anyway.” How many times have women been judged or even reprimanded for being sex positive, or even being pictured in clothing that is “too revealing”, even if it’s just a bathing suit, simply because the fact that breasts exist seem to lower the respect they receive from a man? This is the artwork of a woman that is begging for people to underestimate her due to their lack of common sense surrounded by the word ‘respect’. It’s a visual rant on the Madonna Whore complex, in which the Madonna—a wholly virtuous, pure, and chaste woman—and the whore—a promiscuous, seductive, and degraded woman, is impossible to combine in the mind of most Men. If they are dumb enough to assume she’s this “low quality” woman, then they’ll never see her true intentions and she can get whatever the f*ck she wants. So go ahead and Judge her.
ABOUT THE ARTIST
My name is Cindy Fonseca and I am an artist based in Aurora, IL. Being an artistically inclined child, I was drawing and sketching for as long as I can remember. I began to gravitate towards the medium of oil and acrylic paints throughout high school, and ever since the possibilities were endless. Vulnerable moments led me to use art as a creative outlet to explore what I could not audibly express, so I began to paint about injustices and heart break whether consciously or subconsciously. My work now is focused around feministic strength and personal growth through vibrant visuals, color psychology, and sometimes mixed with shocking imagery. I am constantly being inspired by the progression of woman empowerment, to spiritual healing practices, to the fight for justice we are all hoping will become easier in the future. The bottom line of my art is trusting the process, and to allow the finished product to tell the viewer (including me) exactly what they needed to see at the moment they needed to see it. My work as been on display in galleries in Seattle as well as the Chicago suburbs, including a Solo Exhibition in June of this year.
© Cindy Fonseca