Naomi's project sample
I feel that when people see me standing with my work, their first observation of the piece is that it’s very feminine. I don’t really know what that means, but I don’t think they’re really saying anything about the work- only about who has made it. I think people have a hard time seeing past the fact that whatever work was made by a woman, that the scope of it is then lessened, like the female lens is more limiting than any other.
In the classroom, however, I think dynamics are really shifting in a positive direction. A lot of the arts classes I’ve taken have had a female majority. Young women today are being told that they are just as capable as everyone else, and I feel like we are taking advantage of the opportunities presented to us more than ever before.
How did you hear about the scholarship and how did you feel when you heard you are nominated for that?
I heard about the scholarship at a Youth Art Exchange faculty meeting. When I got nominated I was pretty pumped, and was really excited about the writing aspect of it. In school, there aren’t many opportunities for such subjective writing, let alone topics of feminism and the importance of women in the art world.
How do you see your future in design field and specifically as a women in this field?
I hope to become a participant in the field whose work is viewed beyond the lens of “made by a woman”- my work aims to broaden one’s scope of vision, after all. I want to contribute to the artistic community, and support small, local artists as others have done for me.
