Izzy Hollis

PAINTING

My art practice is rooted in drawing. I use pen and ink to re-invent and re-interpret stereotypes of women, as portrayed in the literature and art of the Pre-Raphaelite artists. Through my drawing I attempt to liberate the women who were depicted as frail and helpless, or sensual and evil. My recent drawings provide a reflection on the idealised female forms of the past and the portrayal of women today. My process begins with observational drawing of cemetery statues which are combined with drawings of my friends, who kindly agreed to act as life models. These hybrid forms, or combined drawings of living female figures with structures that have been worn away through time, expose a haunting presence. This re-interpretation is intended to raise questions about how little has changed in the treatment of women over the last century,as well as the ways in which women have contested and opposed these stereotypical notions.