Still Waters
It's Women's History Month, so thoughts and images are forming around my girlhood spent in woods and fields as a free-ranging semi-feral creature, who only returned home to eat, sleep, read, draw, and drink from the garden hose. When I was a child, something magical happened every day. There's nothing more pagan than a fierce little girl in her element, but the world's systems civilize our true nature right out of us. Research suggests that many girls’ confidence takes a nosedive as early as age eight and drops by 30% from ages 8 to 14, with a particularly steep drop starting at age twelve. Girls are wise enough by the age of 12 to see that the world treats men as active subjects and women as passive objects. We’ve always known.
Quoting Claire Shipman's article in The Atlantic-
"As boys and girls (and men and women) take risks and see the payoffs, they gain the courage to take more risks in the future. Conversely, confidence’s absence can inhibit the very sorts of behaviors—risk taking, failure, and perseverance—that build it back up. So the cratering of confidence in girls is especially troubling because of long-term implications. It can mean that risks are avoided again and again, and confidence isn’t being stockpiled for the future. And indeed, the confidence gender gap that opens at puberty often remains throughout adulthood.
At an early age, parents and teachers frequently encourage and reward girls’ people-pleasing, perfectionistic behavior, without understanding the consequences.
It’s essential to close the gap, and to do so early, because the long-term effects of these dynamics hurt not only girls, but the women they become."
I almost forgot about the untamed version of me after being domesticated all these years. But suddenly I am remembering her and reclaiming a bit of her innate wisdom and sovereignty at last. Using my original photography layered with found photos, textures from my drawings and paintings and collage elements to unlearn enough to be as wise as I once was.
Still Waters
It's Women's History Month, so thoughts and images are forming around my girlhood spent in woods and fields as a free-ranging semi-feral creature, who only returned home to eat, sleep, read, draw, and drink from the garden hose. When I was a child, something magical happened every day. There's nothing more pagan than a fierce little girl in her element, but the world's systems civilize our true nature right out of us. Research suggests that many girls’ confidence takes a nosedive as early as age eight and drops by 30% from ages 8 to 14, with a particularly steep drop starting at age twelve. Girls are wise enough by the age of 12 to see that the world treats men as active subjects and women as passive objects. We’ve always known.
Quoting Claire Shipman's article in The Atlantic-
"As boys and girls (and men and women) take risks and see the payoffs, they gain the courage to take more risks in the future. Conversely, confidence’s absence can inhibit the very sorts of behaviors—risk taking, failure, and perseverance—that build it back up. So the cratering of confidence in girls is especially troubling because of long-term implications. It can mean that risks are avoided again and again, and confidence isn’t being stockpiled for the future. And indeed, the confidence gender gap that opens at puberty often remains throughout adulthood.
At an early age, parents and teachers frequently encourage and reward girls’ people-pleasing, perfectionistic behavior, without understanding the consequences.
It’s essential to close the gap, and to do so early, because the long-term effects of these dynamics hurt not only girls, but the women they become."
I almost forgot about the untamed version of me after being domesticated all these years. But suddenly I am remembering her and reclaiming a bit of her innate wisdom and sovereignty at last. Using my original photography layered with found photos, textures from my drawings and paintings and collage elements to unlearn enough to be as wise as I once was.