Textile Details

'XX1 Century Goddess', by Ana Zlatkes & Mirta Zak. (Photo: Ana Zlatkes)

This arpillera was created specifically for the Verbal Arts Centre International Women’s day 2014 initiative "Women 31". It gives us an insight into the lives of contemporary professional woman.

We see a woman juggling the demands of family and professional life. Her ironing board doubles as a computer table and with her other hand she manoeuvres her hair dryer while balancing her phone. The stethoscope slung around her neck indicates that she is in the medical profession. The toddler wrapped around her legs, demanding immediate attention, is a quintessential image of motherhood, which resonates in all cultures. For this woman and for women globally, negotiating their multi-layered roles is a delicate, ever shifting, act of balance.

Through this textile image, which was inspired by a cartoon drawing by Mónica Lalanda, Ana and Mirta prompt us to consider the global journeys of women, and to reflect on how and where womens' experiences are at odds with our vision for women in the twenty first century.

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