Eloise Schoeman

MA Painting

Website: eloiseschoeman.art
Instagram: @eloiseschoeman.art

Title of Work: “The Night Moves”

Artist Statement:
How does the female gaze from a Third-world perspective change in a First-world setting? The sleeve shock that First-world countries treat women no better than impoverished and openly chauvinistic societies had led me to this question. Through painting and experience, I grew to understand that the female gaze is one of weariness, exasperation, exhaustion, and constant caution. No matter what society you’re in, being a woman is a risk to one’s safety. Through painting, I dissected the understanding that the female gaze is knowing this reality, carrying it with you in the back of your mind but not letting it cripple you. This has lead to forming some sort of accord with the certainty of what comes with the territory of being a woman in any society.