Let Them Eat Cake (EatMe) art series discussion

Oh My Gawd! This is so different from what you've done before! Actually, in my lifetime I've painted more figurative works than anything else. I've been mostly concentrating on abstractations over that past 6 years or so. What's new is my painting a political-social statement. As I grow older, the thumping thought, IF NOT NOW, WHEN? becomes louder and louder. Full, in-your-face discussions through painting is what springs forth from this enlivened heartbeat. How long have you been working on these seven paintings? Including concept and building canvses, it took two years. It started out as a live performance in my gallery. It took a year to fully design the idea of a painting series and build the canvases -   I started painting the first one in June, 2007. I painted them in order of progression; the baby was first and the middle-aged woman was last. However, I have gone back and refined my strokes and design of each piece through out the whole process. -Szn, Feb 27, 2008	This page gives you a "peek" into the new series being painted over this last year. This link will take you to a sheet of all the paintings.
“Eat Me” is a series of oil paintings showing the beginning, middle and the end of a life caught in a subverted path using burkas and cakes as metaphors.     Art not only reflects the world, but art can shape the world.	Act Now  - the poem which inspired this series How long is the day? Can we afford to wait much longer? Our time is always shorter than we think. Some say I should let things be, To evolve as they would, But I say we are all part of the evolution.   <more>
A peek into a portion of 'Baby Cakes'	A happy, smiling baby clutches a cupcake with a cherry on top, unaware of her own one-ness with the world. Full painting of 'Baby Cakes' is an oil on canvas, 16 x 20"
A peek into a portion of Alice in Wonderland	An older child soon ignores remnants of the cupcake, and eventually becomes fascinated instead by a temptation, beckoning in icing on the big cake to "Eat Me". Full painting of 'Alice In Wonderland' is an oil on canvas, 16 x 20"
A peek into a portion of 'Eat Me'	This painting is the center piece of the "Eat Me" series, epitomizing the objectification of women -   however, anyone can find themselves in this situation at any time of life. When were you not seen or heard; who used you for their own gain?  This is the heart of Eat Me, literally and symbolically. Full painting of 'Eat Me' is an oil on canvas, 30 x 24"
A peek into a portion of	She has become the cake. This is an image of powerlessness and invisibility.  If she stays this way, she'll devolve to be nothing, to have nothing left to offer anyone, even herself. There is a window or a door somewhere, but it is hard to see her way out. Full painting of 'Where's Mine?' is an acrylic on canvas, 30 x 24"
A peek into a portion of 'Gone''	She kept covered and unheard. She now is nothing more than a frame holding empty dreams, a.shriveled specter. The only choice she sees is to turn in on herself, until she is inside out. Full painting of 'Gone. All Gone' is an oil on canvas, 30 x 24"
A peek into a portion of 'Reborn'	The burka is off. She is new again. She's passed through fire and points the way to the path ahead. She looks back to her sisters; she can't leave them behind. Full painting of 'Reborn' is an oil on canvas, 39 x 24"
A peek into a portion of 'Audacious	After she turns to the future and becomes one with the world, she is a fully mature woman, knowledge and choices are now secondary to inspiration and lessons learned. She is actualized and grounded. Full painting of "Audacious" is an oil on canvas, 47 x 36"
The story of Eat Me is deeply personal to me. I want to expose and shed more light on the literal and metaphorical suppression and objectification of women. There are women out there who I know could help our world as well as theirs, by helping themselves to be the human being they came into this life to be. Being aware is the first step. Educating oneself, the next.
You can see these paintings on May 10th and 11th 2008 10-5pm at 4030 Transport St. #J32, Palo Alto, CA 94303 during Silicon Valley Open Studios