Expectations

Expectations, Chaz Howkins, 2018, human hair on wax strips and pencil on paper

I was commissioned to create a piece of work which related to the theme of hair for an exhibition called Hair Matters.  I decided to focus on pubic hair and the expectations of bodies which are read as female.  The wax strips which surround the vulva are covered in real human hair to mimic pubic hair while swapping the expected colours of the vulva and the wax strips.

Not My Cup Of Tea exhibition

Photograph by Faith Berry

I participated in an exhibition alongside 22 other artists, I chose to exhibit The Death of Childhood as it was an older piece which I had yet to exhibit publicly.

Tipsy Art

Frustration at Stereotypes?, Chaz Howkins, 2015, photograph

Awful, Chaz Howkins, 2015, paint

Frustration, Chaz Howkins, 2015,  mixed media

Binaries, Chaz Howkins, 2015, photograph

I created these pieces the morning after a night out and think the results are very unsuccessful, but interesting and humorous nonetheless.  Inspired by Heather Cassils, I painted my knuckles pink and proceeded to punch a lump of clay onto a sheet of paper to express my frustration concerning gender stereotypes.  For the next piece, I filled one hand with blue paint and one with pink paint and proceeded to smear them on paper - the colours didn't overlap as easily as I intended so the piece seems to support the idea of gender as binary, which I do not agree with.

I took a photo of my hands afterwards as I found it interesting how barely any pink was on the blue hand, whereas the pink hand had become much darker and bluer - mirroring how it is seen as acceptable within society for women to express masculine traits, however men are viewed negatively for expressing feminine traits.

Gender stereotypes in advertising

Boys Toys, Chaz Howkins, 2015, collage

Girls Toys, Chaz Howkins, 2015, collage

Following my larger collages, I decided to collage the gendered products over male and female faces, which I feel was not as successful but does create an interesting contrast between the two portraits.

Gender dysphoria

Dreamer, Chaz Howkins, photograph and pencil, 2015

This image portrays Barbie's sense of gender dysphoria as she longs for more muscular 'masculine' arms.  I think it puts a humorous spin on a somewhat serious issue, making it quite light hearted.