There is no denying the lack of people (especially women) of color in art work. White women are aplenty, however – Mona Lisa, the Girl with the Pearl Earring, and The Birth of Venus, to name a few. That lack of diversity needs to change – it’s the 21st Century, for crying out loud.
Thankfully, the Art Hoe Collective exists, and their aim is to change art for the better. In an interview with Buzzfeed, co-founder Jam, explains women of color in art are usually hyper-sexualized, “whether it be in music, paintings, photographs.” The collective also wishes to change the way people of color see themselves. When, for the longest time, you’ve been portrayed as overtly sexual, you start to believe you are – you begin seeing yourself as such, like a character created through years of race discrimination. Giving POC roles in the art world that aren’t hyper-sexualized or discriminatory, Jam reasoned, would end that cycle.
Although the term hoe is seemingly derogatory, the collective is actually using it to reclaim it. Women, especially black women, have been subjected to this term by society for so long and by reclaiming it, “we determine how you see us and how you consume us,” Mars, one of the artists behind the project, explained.
According to the Instagram, rules of submission are as simple as providing your name, pronouns, race/identity, motivation, artist credits, apps and software used, and race/gender/class motivations and theories. There are no restrictions to mediums used in submissions so long as everything is credited correctly. There is, however, a no selfie rule.
To submit, simply email your art to [email protected]. In the meantime, take a look at some of our favorites for inspiration:
1) Amanda Stenberg’s message that “BY SPREADING OUR LIGHT AND OUR ART WE ARE BEGINNING A CONSCIOUS REVOLUTION.”
2) The words of Sandra, an NYC-based poet.
3) Jihan, a 17-year-old Muslim Indonesian person who made colorful pop-art.
Images via Instagram.
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