VA Code 32.1-370 [Drawing]
Description/Abstract/Artist Statement
Artist Statement
My objective is to bring attention to the controversy that surrounds public breastfeeding in American society. I use image transfer to layer the law and research statistics about breastfeeding below the image of a mother nursing her baby. My goal is to make viewers pause to consider how they feel about women breastfeeding in public and why they feel this way.
The title, VA Code 32.1-370, refers to the legal statute in Virginia that protects women who breastfeed in public. The mixed media diptych is made on two wood panels that separate the mother from her infant at the place where the breast should connect them. The mother’s image is drawn in black and white while the infant is brightly colored in pastels which further divides them. Beneath the image, I have printed VA Code 32.1-370, but the words are obscured.
The Virginia Department of Health has a public breastfeeding card that can be downloaded and printed at home. Women are advised on the state website to carry this card with them whenever they nurse in public just in case they are harassed or threatened with arrest. These cards are seen around the frame on all sides to protect the breastfeeding mother. Other statutes printed around the mother and child include indecent exposure laws.
Faculty Advisor/Mentor
Elliott Jones, Alison Stinely
Presentation Type
Artwork
Disciplines
Art and Design | Illustration
Session Title
Art Exhibit
Location
Learning Commons @ Perry Library, Art Gallery
Start Date
2-2-2019 8:00 AM
End Date
2-2-2019 12:39 PM
VA Code 32.1-370 [Drawing]
Learning Commons @ Perry Library, Art Gallery
Artist Statement
My objective is to bring attention to the controversy that surrounds public breastfeeding in American society. I use image transfer to layer the law and research statistics about breastfeeding below the image of a mother nursing her baby. My goal is to make viewers pause to consider how they feel about women breastfeeding in public and why they feel this way.
The title, VA Code 32.1-370, refers to the legal statute in Virginia that protects women who breastfeed in public. The mixed media diptych is made on two wood panels that separate the mother from her infant at the place where the breast should connect them. The mother’s image is drawn in black and white while the infant is brightly colored in pastels which further divides them. Beneath the image, I have printed VA Code 32.1-370, but the words are obscured.
The Virginia Department of Health has a public breastfeeding card that can be downloaded and printed at home. Women are advised on the state website to carry this card with them whenever they nurse in public just in case they are harassed or threatened with arrest. These cards are seen around the frame on all sides to protect the breastfeeding mother. Other statutes printed around the mother and child include indecent exposure laws.