The Divine Mother Mural Controversy

Body Image... and Etiquette!

2011-02-01T23:20:00.000-08:00

It's been over a year since writing the post The Divine Mother Gets Some Work Done-- in which I briefly discuss body image and declare my satisfaction with my own big-ness-- and since then I've had the profoundly strange experience of losing 50 pounds very rapidly due to circumstances out of my control. The strangest thing, however, is NOT my own radical shapeshifting-- it's dealing with everyone else's reactions... many of which are less than polite.

I was perfectly comfortable in my body when it was 5o pounds heavier; the rest of the world, however, seems to have a problem with it. When I was a larger person and needed to shop for clothes, salespeople turned their noses at me, saying "we don't have anything in your size," or at best, ignored me completely. Certain well-meaning family members were certain it was my fault I'm not married yet (I was only 27), that it must be because I was fat-- and then proceeded to "help" me by pointing out how everything I ate and wore was wrong. Now people I hardly know keep telling me they barely recognize me, how beautiful and healthy I look... often followed by just how huge I was before, and/or how unattractive they found me. I think that is a terribly rude thing to say to someone, yet people don't seem to think twice about giving me their full opinion of my appearance when I never wanted it in the first place.

Well for the benefit of the curvaceous people who may be reading this, plenty of people found me attractive when I was fat, and one boyfriend even told me I'd be "perfect" if I "gain 50 pounds". Another friend recently said "I thought you were hot before and you are hot now.... I always thought hotness comes from within." I'm still with the man I was with 50 pounds ago, and he says I look perfect either way.

see more Lolcats and funny pictures

What is even more perplexing to me is that the general consensus among people who marvel at my sudden weight loss is that I must be more disciplined, healthier, and working out more. In reality, I was in better shape as a big person and got a lot more exercise when I was larger (before I fell ill and lost so much weight).

The fact is, most of this weight gain and illness was due to an unknown gluten intolerance-- so by finding this out, and ceasing to eat gluten, I lost 50 pounds even more suddenly than I gained them. I am in no more control of my body-- or anything else-- now than I was when I was more voluptuous. In fact, I don't think we had much choice in the shape of our bodies any more than we had a choice in being human instead of a fish. Yet people act towards me as if I have changed, as if I am more disciplined, more in control, more respectable. They seem to think, since I am thin, I must be a better person....

...If only it was so easy!

Sorry to disappoint, but I still have all the same flaws I did months ago.... oh, and you really don't need to point those out, either. Thanks in advance.

Artwork for Animal Charities

2010-01-29T13:54:00.000-08:00

For the last couple years or so I have been a member of Etsy For Animals, a nonprofit organization of international artists who regularly donate proceeds from our artwork from our online stores on Etsy.com to animal charities. Every month, we select a Charity of the Month to donate to.

EFA Artists Helping Animals' January charity of the month is: Humane Society of Missouri http://hsmo.org I am moved to donate to HSMO because I read about their incredible rescue in TIME magazine of 500+ dogs from a fighting ring - the largest dog fighting rescue in U.S. history, and saw portraits and descriptions of the dogs who were rescued here:

http://www.time.com/time/photogallery/0,29307,1942909_2005481,00.html

The Humane Society of Missouri is in dire need of support from animal lovers and charities as they seek to find loving homes for and rehabilitate these tortured creatures.

Here's where you can find beautiful handmade items and artwork to benefit our Charity of the Month: http://tinyurl.com/yembbbb

Here are items I am donating from my shop: http://www.etsy.com/shop/MichelleVielle?section_id=5849402

I am adding more charity items all the time! Please check back soon :)

Divine Mother Gets Some Work Done

2009-11-27T00:23:00.000-08:00

It is surreal to have my mural here in California... and to see it 2.5 years later, after it has been battered by the elements in Eureka Springs, AR. I painted it with outdoor latex house paint so that it would hold up to rain, snow, UV rays, etc... but nature always wins eventually, and it is time for The Divine Mother to get some well-deserved TLC after all She has been through!
While the mural is in good condition, the vibrancy of the colors have faded, and the ancient Egyptian icons I had drawn in with Sharpies had mostly washed away, leaving only their painted silhouettes behind.

I am in the process of restoring the mural to its original vibrancy, and both the owner of the painting and I have big plans for another public showing. I don't want to simply display the mural somewhere, however; I created this mural to be displayed in the context of a themed show about icons involving many other artists. Therefore, I am dreaming of collaborating with other artists to create a new exhibit...

...as for what the theme would be, body image is something that has been on my mind a lot lately. It is outrageous how incredibly prejudiced modern society is against obesity, with the media constantly remarking on how dangerous, unhealthy, ugly, and socially unacceptable it is too be fat-- while ignoring the dangers of being too thin. Beauty lies in the kaleidoscope of forms, shapes, and colors that we come in, but our society accepts only one shape.

Years ago I had a professional photo shoot done for promotional purposes. I was very thin in those photos-- which is unnatural for my body type-- because I was not eating enough or getting the nutrition I needed, and I was very unhealthy because of it. I was too weak for my immune system to fight anything off, and was frequently debilitated by illness. Yet people tell me how beautiful I look in those pictures and that I should lose weight again. Well, I say:

... FAT CHANCE!

Divine Mother Mural SOLD!

2009-07-28T14:31:00.000-07:00

The Divine Mother Mural sold to a good home in California for $1,000. 40% of this sale goes to the nonprofit Artery in Eureka Springs AR.

Divine Mother mural on NPR

2009-07-21T12:36:00.000-07:00

http://www.publicbroadcasting.net/kuaf/news.newsmain/article/1/0/1530909/OZARKS.AT.LARGE/%27The.Divine.Mother%27.on.Sale.on.eBay

Mural will remain up for sale on Ebay until Tues July 28 at 2:00 pm

More news! Yay!

2009-07-03T23:57:00.000-07:00

A hateful religious fanatic lets it rip in a letter to the editor of The Lovely County Citizen:
http://www.lovelycitizen.com/story/1552257.html

Kenneth E. Murray's ridiculous and badly written letter only helps The Artery more, because it reveals just how ignorant and intolerant its opponents are. There is no use in arguing with these fanatics; it is best to just keep painting!

Thanks for supporting The Artery!

2009-07-02T01:21:00.000-07:00

Thanks to your support, the artery will not be censored!

"It is a two year contract and you'll be happy to hear that it won't be censored by the city- the phrasing says that the panels will be reviewed by Charlotte's own jurors, who are artists, including myself. The one concession Charlotte had to make is that she had to do the contract with her company Glamorama instead of through the CDP and National heritage foundation, which means a lot more work for her and a lot of time wasted setting that up in the first place. The important thing, though, is that the Artery continues." --Rosie Rose, artery artist and assistant to Charlotte Buchanan, owner of the Artery

A detail from my mural

2009-06-06T20:47:00.000-07:00

Michelle is an award-winning artist who paints on commission and is accepting new commissions at this time. Please e-mail her if you are interested in commissioning a work or series of works.

This painting will be for sale on E-BAY very soon-- TBA!!! 40% of the sale will go directly to he non-profit Artery, and this part of the sale is a tax-deductible donation.

The Vatican wants artists to revive the tradition of painting Virgin Mary breastfeeding!

2009-06-06T20:37:00.000-07:00

A Relevant Article from the Vatican's Newspaper:

Marian images need artistic rehabilitation, says Vatican newspaper

By Carol Glatz
Catholic News Service

VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- The loving, tender images of Mary breast-feeding the baby Jesus need an artistic and spiritual rehabilitation, said the Vatican newspaper, L'Osservatore Romano.

A vast iconography of traditional Christian art has been "censored by the modern age" because images depicting Our Lady's naked breast for her child were deemed too "unseemly," the paper said June 19.

Artists began depicting a fully clothed nursing Mary in sacred art in an attempt to make her seem less "carnal," but the depictions unfortunately also diminished her human, loving and tender side "that touches the hearts and faith of the devout," the newspaper said.

see the rest of the story (from June 2008) at: http://www.catholicnews.com/data/stories/cns/0803257.htm

A note from the artist

2009-06-04T22:33:00.001-07:00

I am honored that my painting “The Divine Mother” (4' x 8', acrylics) has caused such controversy. The theme of the 2007 Artery Exhibit in Eureka Springs, AR was Icons, and I chose to paint what I believe to be one of the most beautiful and inspirational iconographic themes that transcends the world of art to include the history of mankind— the simple and beautiful image of a woman breastfeeding her child. The judges at the Portfolios.com Creative Awards, an international competition, also found this to be beautiful and gave me an award for this painting (Illustration '08).

Since ancient times, people have been so inspired by the beauty of this image that incredible myths and religious stories and artwork have been created, even worshipped. This includes depictions of the Egyptian Goddess Isis breastfeeding baby Horus, an ancient myth which bears striking similarity to and which many scholars say inspired the Madonna del Latte or Maria Lactans imagery of Europe, which reached the height of its popularity in the middle ages.

I title my painting “The Divine Mother,” though it is not a depiction of the Virgin Mary, as many people erroneously believe. The Virgin Mary is just one divine mother icon of many; my divine mother is one of unity, love, gentleness, compassion—and so she combines world traditions and religions, transcending time and space, melding pre-Christian religions with Christianity to be an icon we can all identify with and find peace and beauty with. Look closely at her face—it is half-blue (many Egyptian statues of Isis are blue) , and she is wearing Egyptian makeup.

As many people have noticed, I put a new twist on this subject by adding the text “Does this halo make my face look fat?” to the painting. The Madonna Lactans and Isis imagery began as a way to show the compassion of the divine mother and therefore to make her more real, human, and accessible to us. Adding the text was my attempt to refresh and modernize this theme—to make her accessible, relevant, and real to a modern audience. The divine mother, in all her forms, is undeniably the greatest supermodel of the art world since the beginning of mankind—so I believe that like you, she worries about how she looks in a painting, photograph, or sculpture!

Those who are offended by this image should not restrict themselves to sending letters to their local and national papers; they must also take offense at the hundreds of Madonna Lactans and Isis/Horus imagery by the Great Masters found in museums and churches around the world, and should also direct their compaints to the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, the Walters Art Museum in Baltimore, the Egyptian Museum in Cairo (to name a few) for their display of the barebreasted Isis (c.330-640 B.C.E.). They should also complain to the Pinacoteca Nazionale in Siena, Italy for displaying Lorenzetti Ambrogio’s Madonna del Latte/Maria Lactans (1330 CE), The Museum of Fine Arts in Budapest, Hungary for Correggio’s Madonna del Latte (1523 CE), Andrea Pisano’s work in the Museo Nazionale di San Mateo (14th century CE), and….oh wow, I see Arkansas’ very own Arkansas Art Center is exhibiting “World of Pharohs: Treasuries of Egypt Revealed” until July 5, 2009!

On the other hand, those who are offended by the female form should skip writing to the papers, churches, and museums entirely, and send their complaints directly to God.

Sincerely,

Michelle Levy

Follow me on Twitter: MichelleLevyArt
Join my Facebook group "We Support The Divine Mother Mural": http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=86640413175

About the Artist:

Michelle Levy graduated with a Bachelor in Fine Arts in Illustration from the Rhode Island School of Design (RISD) in 2004 and studied music and theater at Brown University. She's worked as an illustrator, puppeteer/puppetmaker, muralist, painter, and "fiddlinist" for various theatrical groups and ensembles including Big Nazo Puppets, Brown University Dept of Theater, and Cantiga Music Ensemble. Michelle also worked at the Austin Musuem of Art (AMOA), leading art activities that corresponded with the exhibitions.

Currently she creates paintings on commission. You can view more of her "obscene" paintings here: http://SFbayPetPortraits.com and here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/michellelevy/

In the News:

2009-06-04T21:58:00.000-07:00

Lovely County Citizen (June 18, 2009)
My column:
http://www.lovelycitizen.com/story/1548443.html
lots of great opinions and articles about the Artery in this issue!

Arkansas Democrat Gazette (June 11, 2009)
http://nwanews.com/adg/News/261710/

NWA/Fox News TV
this is hilarious! the title is "Erotic Paintings Turning Heads" wow....erotic??? Once again, Fox doesn't do their research and gets the facts wrong.
nwahomepage.com/content/fulltext/?cid=94832

AOL "Top News"
http://news.aol.com/article/art-may-be-too-provocative-for-town/515265

Fox News
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,524999,00.html

Arkansas Times
http://www.arktimes.com/Articles/ArticleViewer.aspx?ArticleID=6219c06d-996c-4eff-805c-5a282d468cc1

Arkansas Democrat Gazette (May 24, 2009)
http://www.nwanews.com/adg/News/260323/

Lovely County Citizen
http://www.lovelycitizen.com/story/1530861.html

View a larger version of the painting here on the Artery website
http://thearterysite.com/Artists/Michelle-Levy.html

The Artery website
http://www.thearterysite.com

and I really enjoyed reading the intelligent commentary at:
Wren's Nest News
http://www.witchvox.com/wren/wn_detaila.html?id=20684