Project 1324 Artist Spotlight
Following the Project 1324 challenge, Women’s March Global got to speak with the artists behind the winning entries to hear more about their work and what drives them to be a part of the #WomensWave! The project was launched to spread awareness of the staggering rate of violence that women and girls face around the world every day, where 1 in 3 women and girls worldwide have experienced either physical or sexual intimate partner violence or non-partner sexual violence in their lifetime. As part of Adobe’s Project 1324, WMG called on artists to create an image that represents #WomensWave, #EndViolenceAgainstWomen and the reasons women and allies are uniting around the world to advocate for change.
Artist Spotlight: Ana Maria Sena
Artwork: India Karaja
Ana Maria Sena, 24 years old, is a visual arts student at the University of Brasília, Brazil. Through her work, Ana advocates for the rights of women, LGBTQ and Indigenous peoples describing the need for solidarity between causes in this activism. Brazilian indigenous peoples have been victimized by policies that culminated in their territorial and population extermination; as a black woman living in Brazil, Ana works to represent these narratives. Every 11 minutes a women is raped in Brazil and in 2017 around 450 people died as victims of homophobia. Ana’s art exposes the dangerous situation within Brazil, giving a voice to what she describes as a “silent genocide” and calls on community and government for change.
Follow Ana on Facebook & Instagram.
Artist Spotlight: Wednesday Tran
Artwork: Rise! You Can Do It!
Wednesday Tran is an illustrator based in San Diego, CA. Known for her vibrant palettes, Wednesday combines bold colors with provocative political statements to inspire conversation and action. She has worked with Jane Underground 1969, Reality Changers, and The Little Saigon Foundation SD to bring light to issues of reproductive justice, education inequality, and gentrification. Her piece, “Rise! You Can Do It!” depicts H’hen Nie, Miss Universe Vietnam 2018, standing tall to illustrate the strength of women who have risen out and escaped the toxic cycle of child marriage, which exposes girls to violence and sexual abuse throughout their whole lives. This practice absolutely needs to end.
Follow Wednesday on Instagram.
Artist Spotlight: Erin Johnson
Artwork: Loss and Light
Erin Johnson is a Madrid-based illustrator, writer, and English teacher originally from the U.S. She is a member of the Madrid Resistance and this year’s Women’s March event planning team. Erin’s artwork honors the women who have lost children to violence, police brutality, inhumane border policies, and racism. Their stories of grief and loss moved her to create a work which reflects the pain of deep loss in an effort to make us face these issue.
Follow Erin on Instagram & her blog.
Artist Spotlight: Mónica Acedo
Artwork: No More (No Más)
Mónica Acedo, 21 years old, is a digital art and animation student based in Mexico. Mónica has always loved painting and drawing and creates work that draws on her own experiences and the community in which she lives. On average there are 7.5 femicides in Mexico per day. Ana’s artwork illustrates that violence against women is a reality we live with every day. Through her artwork, Mónica is advocating for the coming together of peoples and communities to show that there is strength in solidarity and together we must stand up for change. Mónica’s artwork portrays a woman who is standing up against abuse and fighting to end gender violence. She describes the smudged lipstick as representative of women’s freedom to determine their own appearance and the red bandanna as a symbol of resistance, that we will no longer be silenced and we will stand up and advocate for change.
Follow Mónica on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.
Artist Spotlight: Aima Warriach
Artwork: You are not alive to please colonized eyes
Aima Warriach is a graphic artist and student who identifies as a Canadian-Pakistani, Muslim Women. Her artwork reimagines this intersection of identities by combining seapunk and traditional Muslim motifs. Muslim women who wear religious dresses are the main targets of state discriminatory policies and violent hate crimes in the US. These discourses often instrumentalize feminist agendas, which in the case of Muslim women, leads to the specific isolation of Muslim women from feminist and emancipatory interests. Aima’s artwork represents how a woman’s body should not be policed by men or the law. It aims to derail the conversation that provides excuses for gendered Islamophobia and violence against women.
Tenzin Kyisarh is the Communications Manager for Women’s March Global.
Maya Hendler is an Intern at Women’s March Global.
