#brokenwomenmendstronger at the ARC Gallery though February 2, 2019
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Chicago, IL, January 1, 2019
#brokenwomenmendstronger
The ARC Gallery & Educational Foundation is pleased to present the work of artist Virginia Mallon featuring a series of portraits titled #brokenwomenmendstronger, a powerful and very personal body of work, that was initially inspired by the #metoo movement, and urged unflinchingly onward by the Kavanaugh hearings.
From the cornerstone painting of Christine Blasey Ford to the girl next door, the series examines the plight of the individual victim. Portraits of survivors, symbolically represented on discarded slate from a condemned mental hospital, depict faces of reflection, aguish and resolve, as women strive to persevere in a society where over 35% of them - one in three - have experienced either physical or sexual violence in her lifetime.
In the artist’s words, “#brokenwomenmendstronger was born in the fall of 2018, when the Kavanaugh hearings forced me to revisit a 30-year-old #metoo trauma from my own life. This exhibition is about women applauding women’s courage to endure and, ultimately, prevail – despite it all. It’s a testament to our power. I began the series with obvious heroes: Hillary Clinton, Anita Hill, Christine Blasey Ford, Emma Gonzalez, Oprah, Maya Angelou, and Tina Turner, but I also wanted to include the everyday women. We who have risen victorious from these experiences without the luxury of celebrity or wealth.
We, who will not be broken by abuse and, where we have been broken, we mend ourselves with figurative gold, much like the Japanese art of kintsukuroi for repairing broken pottery. I believe that we can be liberated by sharing our stories. Abuse often isolates victims, but when we speak with each other, we derive strength from our commonality. The circle of solidarity not only protects, but it empowers, and reclaiming our power is critical. It’s the first line of defense in the battle to prevent further attacks against women and hold perpetrators accountable.
I hope that in gathering these faces of survivors, sharing our stories, others who have found themselves in similar unfortunate circumstances realize that they are not alone, along with the knowledge that we can stand shoulder to shoulder, story to story, and mend - and in mending change our world.”
#brokenwomenmendstronger will be on exhibit at the ARC Gallery through February 2, 2019. Opening
Reception is on Friday, January 11th from 6:00 – 9:00 pm.
For more information:
1463 West Chicago Avenue, Chicago IL
Telephone: 312-877-5760 Email: info@arcgallery.org
or visit: www.VirginiaMallon.com
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