Little Man of the House
Poem and Art commissioned by Do the Green Thing for the 2019 Exhibition 'Man-made Patriarchy and the Planet'.
The exhibition is a powerful response by 30 women and non-binary artists who operate at the intersection of creativity and social change.With rage, sadness, hope and humour, the artists show us that patriarchy is not only bad for the culture - it’s destroying the environment, too.
This was Shagufta and I's contribution;
Shagufta’s poem looks to break down the cycle of violence and becomes a eulogy to the power of love and healing. We are asked to re-imagine our concepts: Love is redefined as a space to feel free from constraint or expectation. Masculinity Open definition of Masculinity redefined as a vulnerability and gentleness. And ultimately Motherhood, reshaped as a growth, an expansion of one’s self and one’s offspring, rather than a perpetuation or passing down of fear, hurt and insecurity.
Sabba’s art is a response and a visual continuation of the nurturing and loving voice in Shagufta’s poem. In the art, the domestic home (usually representative of feminine space) is inverted to represent the built environment, containment, and masculinity. Her boy, heavy-headed with the weight of gendered expectations, with his father, uncle and grandfather looking out through the windows of the house, is held in a loving embrace by his mother. Mother, with earthly henna adorning her hands, comes to represent the outdoors, nature, the sun, and ultimately divinity.
Both poem and art celebrate Mother Earth, and how she teaches that even after destruction there is healing and growth in the nature around us."
You can see the online version of the exhibition here;
SABBA AND SHAGUSTA'S PIECE FOR MAN MADE DISASTER
Our friends at Shado Mag have also done a feature of the exhibition;
SHADO MAG COVER