Meadows. Body and the gaze.

The title of this project is „Meadows”. The main theme is a body
treated like an object and becoming a decoration. My paintings are a
collage combinations of realistic depictions of women lying on the
ornamental background. Backgrounds are made of old fabrics – curtains,
bed linen or tablecloths, which are typical of home interior
decoration – stretched directly onto canvas.
Floral patterns push themselves in front of the bodies, as if
overgrowing and encompassing them. The object and ornament engage each
other in a game of oppositions. The artificial floral patterns imitate
life. In the same time, passive, motionless female bodies give up
their vitality. The title „Meadows” hints towards understanding women
as a part of nature, emphasizes a place rather than a person. Female
bodies are commonly treated in such a way, absorbed by the visual
system, deindividualized. My focus is on the social treatment of
women’s bodies as decorations. The body in conjunction with impeccably
decorative backgrounds provokes the gaze. I intend to place the viewer
in a direct confrontation with the picture, but without any personal
contact with the characters, who have no visible faces and personal
features in my depictions. The project is a feminist commentary, a
critique of the supposed innocence of the gaze.