My topic is raising awareness for the women around the world that are treated as though they are less of a person because of their gender. A study done in April 2017 found that women are discriminated against, especially in the healthcare industry, with regard to equal pay/promotions, and within higher education. In an adjusted model of the study, Native American, Black, and Hispanic women were found to be more likely to report gender discrimination than the average White woman. This heightened discrimination is even more prevalent for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer women who experience more harassment and violence. I care about this issue because, as a young woman, I have experienced acts of discrimination, solely because of the gender I was born into.

An important physical element in my arpillera is the choices I made for colors. There aren’t very many. I chose to keep the background in various shades of black and white because I felt that it would focus the onlooker’s attention towards the words on the piece and the center focal point of the project: the four faces in the middle. You can also see the element of race that I tried to incorporate into my arpillera. Looking at the background faces in different shades of grey, I represented a variety of skin colors. The key design elements of my artwork are race, feminism, and the power of the female population.

These are critical because the entire message I’m trying to get across to the people who will view my art, is that women are taking back their individuality. Instead of being the women society has taught them to be, just because they are female, women should be whoever they want to be, regardless of gender.

I think the biggest point that I am trying to make through my arpillera is that women are amazing. We are powerful and wonderful and beautiful in all our own ways. The message that I want to give to people that see this work is that women need to stop apologizing and explaining ourselves and start saying “no” and “because I said so.” Women should be loud and take up as much space as they want to, and dress in whatever clothes and style they want to, and make their presence known.

We should stop silencing ourselves to make society happy and stop laughing at jokes that aren’t funny. We should wear however much makeup we want to, and dance by ourselves in the middle of a crowded dance floor. We don’t owe anything to anyone. We should simply just be whoever we want to be. Unapologetically, beautifully, and perfectly ourselves.