Women are condemned to suffer heartbreak and cry in the darkness and silence of their homes. Behind closed doors, they hide the mistakes of their past, their melancholy, and vulnerability. The image of women protected by cotton and stuffed in a glass case, distant, and incapable of deciphering her melancholy is an antiquated vision. Who decided to paint women in such a manner?
We are not afraid to cry or be vulnerable, because we have accepted who we are and with humor we overcome the obstacles live may throw on our way. These illustrators recognize this is in the best possible way because they know of the joys and tribulations that come with being a modern woman.
Oh Gigue
Oh Gigue is a cartoonist and passionate storyteller. In each of her comics, she represents a unique side to femininity and fearlessly she explores her own psychology. Her poignant works express the ease with which she cries at the movies, her loneliness while surrounded by a crowd, and the sudden urge to cry in private without prying eyes looking.
Sara Herranz
Herranz has positioned herself as one of the most influential illustrators. She sketches a modern woman filled with dreams, who is independent and continues on with her life, embracing the joy and heartbreak that cross her path.
Alexas Pizza
Alexas Pizza only draws women who are sometimes accompanied by men, but are mostly seen enjoying their own company. For her, feminine suffering is nameless, capable of transforming the space women inhabit. The women she portrays are rebellious and fearlessly follow their unique lifestyle.
Kirsten Rothbart
Rothbart plays with colors and portrays the love we all wish to experience. She explores with a touch of childish wonder the impossible task of finding the right person and the difficulties found in intimacy.
Henn Kim
Henn Kim shows us the pains of heartbreak and what it means for her to be a woman. Her surreal illustrations hit home and are profoundly meaningful. For Henn Kim, love is just around the corner and just as swift to fade away.
Elliana Esquivel
Eliana Esquivel’s illustrations hide hard messages. She unflinchingly exposes the painful side of being a woman and the social constructs that imprison her. Eliana screams at the spectator, demanding her feelings, ideas, and words to be heard and taken into account. We will certainly feel identified with her characters and the world they inhabit.
For centuries, no, for millennia, roles have been clearly labelled, and if a woman moved an inch, she was heavily reprimanded. For many year, women have existed behind four walls and heavily guarded from the outside world. As we jump from century to century, we see that women have been typecast into two roles: the whore or the virtuous woman. You were either one or the other, and there was no redemption to be found if you fell from grace.
Ms, Miss, and Mrs, there are many fronts out there for women to assume. The modern woman is not out there knitting away woolen socks, pondering which path to take, whether to be a glorified muse and virgin, or turn into the devil woman, the witch that is out there to seduce hapless men. Instead, she is fighting fierce battles against inequality, and the war is far from being over.