M.J. Cotner-Loomis

American Wedding Study I (Maids)
low fire stoneware, wood, oil paint

My current work in clay and mixed media is based upon an exploration of “girlhood.” It’s what I know, how I see and what I feel. No matter how we have been raised, American girls have expectations, ideals, and fantasies about our lives based on American culture. Marriage, mothering, our sex lives, growing old – all these come with desirable, socially affirmed “plans of action” that can leave even the most self aware girl in a tailspin when she finds herself in one of these situations. I wish to question and make light of some of these expectations that are often not only unattainable, but silly…and very often perpetuated by girls themselves.

The “Bridesmaids” allude to:
a) Jealous circus ponies parading in hopes of being “hitched”
to a more prosperous carriage
b) Symbols of immaturity – a misconception that marriage
raises a woman’s self worth, that many are in a race to
prove themselves thusly
c) A good way to recycle old broomsticks
d) All of the above.

© M.J. Cotner-Loomis