Shrinking Violet 2017

Curator: Zoe Hawk’s painting, "Shrinking Violet," crafted in 2017, presents a curious scene. What strikes you first? Editor: The perspective is unsettling – almost dreamlike, slightly tilted. The bright colors also make it strangely vivid, though the overall mood feels rather melancholic. Curator: Hawk often explores themes of girlhood and societal expectations within confined domestic spaces. The work uses acrylic on canvas, which lends itself to those flat planes of color and somewhat rigid lines. It almost feels staged, doesn't it? Editor: Absolutely. Note the curious juxtaposition of the figures: the girl dancing in her pink tutu contrasts dramatically with the seated, almost despondent figure in blue. What is Hawk trying to express? The joy of youth versus... Curator: Perhaps a commentary on the performance of identity and the restrictive nature of domestic roles available to women. Consider the very sharp angles that describe the architecture in the room—a bright yet restrictive space in which social and emotional roles become fixed. It’s a kind of theatre here, mediated by social norms. Editor: The use of color certainly reinforces that. The yellow curtain in the background reminds me of old school portraiture, a painted backdrop for performance, for staging... Look, also, how flat and dull the textures feel: the sofa seems to lack depth or softness. Even the TV with rabbit ears feels somehow off. It all speaks to me of emotional distance, or flatness. Curator: Interesting observation. One might consider that the television represents the outside world's influence and also connects it to wider trends of artistic creation, drawing our attention to production both in material and social contexts. But tell me about how the dancers relates in this regard, to the notion of a lack of dimension. Editor: Ah, right! She becomes the centerpiece. That, too, might contribute to an idea of enforced identity or societal expectation. All eyes and hopes on her, for her role. It reminds us of issues in popular entertainment and how women have been received for their talent but also subjected to rigid conventions and often harmful norms in the world of popular dance and show business. Curator: Well, this brief viewing certainly brings so many interesting viewpoints into our perception of 'Shrinking Violet'. Hawk invites many diverse ways of seeing! Editor: Indeed. "Shrinking Violet" becomes a meditation on girlhood and the constraints that both support it and keep it from reaching true expressivity, but using vivid color and striking formal choices to keep the conversation interesting.