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| Bloody Barbie, Chaz Howkins, 2015, acrylic & mixed media on board |
This painting aims to discomfort the viewer by subverting the norms of what is expected of a children’s toy and corrupting the innocence of it. The doll appears to cry out to the viewer through lifeless, vacant eyes as if pleading to be relieved of the torture it has been put through. The piece also subverts the norms of society’s constructs of beauty, as the doll can be used to represent society’s expectations of female beauty, which is then destroyed by the use of blood and gore. I feel particularly connected to this piece after having smeared my own blood on it to give it a real sense of grotesque.
I'm looking forward to having this piece exhibited in the Face-off exhibition after Easter.