Badass Women Artists Today

Contemporary women artists continue to introduce work that ignites conversations surrounding race, sex, gender, class, and history today through several different mediums along with implementing their own experiences.

Kara Walker is an African-American woman originally from California who has accomplished great success through her work representing history of Black identities in America and the racism and slavery through black and white large scale silhouettes. Her work almost looked pleasant from far away, but she placed hints of evil within the installation that represent sexual violence perpetuated onto Black women and the violence behind this history.

Gone: An Historical Romance of a Civil War as It Occurred b’tween the Dusky Thighs of One Young Negress and Her Heart (1994): One of her most famous installations and had been in exhibitions all around the world.

Jenny Saville is a UK born and based artist who primarily focuses her work on nude women without intention for the male gaze. Her nude paintings often depict 'mutilated' or brutalized women with more exaggerated features. She says they are to represent the contemporary woman, for women since nude women is still a heavily male-dominated area in society (which makes no sense).

Jenny Saville- Red Fates, 2018: I thought it was interesting to see how she uses painting nude women to convey challenges women face and how our bodies are just as much a part of that, and it is not always pretty and pleasant. 

Simone Leigh is an African American artist from Chicago who uses ceramic sculpture to represent "African traditions, feminism, ethnographic research, post-colonial theory and racial politics" (The New York Times). Her large scale busts of Black women being made of ceramic were still considered contemporary art, and she gained recognition almost all at once after years of crafting her work. The sculptures embody the Black feminine and the beauty it holds. Although she uses an almost archaic medium, her pieces still resonate with contemporary women and have a strong presence.

Simone Leigh working on "Brick House" which will be displayed in Manhattan next year.

Polly Norton, who goes by Polly Nor, is a London based 29 year old artist who shares her illustrations about "women and their demons" with her 1 million Instagram following and counting. She has done three exhibitions including illustrations, ceramics, and installations, but her success sprouted from social media and her ability to access such a large audience that can relate to and inspire her work, just as much as her own experiences do. Her depictions of female anxieties, gender, race, and sexuality resonate with so many people because there is still not enough representation or conversation about these topics and she uses her art to spark them.

Polly Nor - Deep Cleanse, 2018: She often draws women shedding their skin and unveiling their real self. I think it is also important how they are nude, but not intended for the male gaze, and how she draws women of different skin tones.

Mona Hatoum was a Palestinian woman born in Lebanon who's family had been displaced by war at a young age. They had to stay in London, where she began to grow as an artist by using her families displacement and the concept of war and violence in the world through her work. She challenged 'typical' ideas of what art is because the objects she used seemed almost ordinary, but conveyed how she felt no sense of home and how there can be pain in the ordinary. This can expand to race, gender, and class because there are ordinary aspects of everyday life that continue to perpetuate this constant conflict.

Mona Hatoum - Hot Spot III, 2009: She used her displacement from her home in Lebanon to London throughout her pieces and she uses red bright light to outline every continent to suggest there is widespread "conflict and unrest" no matter where you go.

I chose these women because they make bold statements regarding feminism, race, gender, sexuality, and class, and are unapologetic about them. They have been and are still influential in the contemporary art world and are very successful women from different backgrounds.

Works Cited:
1. “Deep Cleanse - By Polly Nor.” POLLY NOR, www.pollynor.com/Illustration/Deep-Cleanse-By-Polly-Nor.
2. “Jenny Saville - 18 Artworks, Bio & Shows on Artsy.” 11 Artworks, Bio & Shows on Artsy, Artsy, www.artsy.net/artist/jenny-saville.
3. “Kara Walker.” Walker Art Center, Walker Art Center, walkerart.org/collections/artists/kara-walker?gclid=Cj0KCQiA3b3gBRDAARIsAL6D-N-2X8ysfvb8jZfHGecgOckGNrmdnklmeNWPCw_Qv8sp_me78SopI_YaAjIiEALw_wcB.
4. Material, Riot. “Jenny Saville Still Manages To Amaze With Ancestors.” Medium.com, Medium, 20 July 2018, medium.com/@cvonhassett/jenny-saville-still-manages-to-amaze-with-ancestors-842ad98e81e6.
5. Pogrebin, Robin, and Hilarie. “An Artist Ascendant: Simone Leigh Moves Into the Mainstream.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 29 Aug. 2018, www.nytimes.com/2018/08/29/arts/design/simone-leigh-sculpture-high-line.html.
6. Tate. “Who Is Mona Hatoum?” Tate, Tate, www.tate.org.uk/art/artists/mona-hatoum-2365/who-is-mona-hatoum.
7. Walker, Kara. “Kara Walker Gone: An Historical Romance of a Civil War as It Occurred B'tween the Dusky Thighs of One Young Negress and Her Heart 1994.” Lee Bontecou. Untitled. 1959 | MoMA, www.moma.org/collection/works/110565.