This Is Love
“This Is Love†shows the close up of a female’s face pinched by a male hand, showing the words THIS IS LOVE on her cheek.
The project was painted with Oil Colors by the brands “Winsor&Newton†and “Old Hollandâ€, with light blue spray paint serving as a base.
The topic of this painting illustrates the problem of abusive relationships and unwanted intimacy, since a common phrase said by the abuser in those situations are the words “this is loveâ€, as in “do not worry, this is the norm, we’re actually quite happy and you should be gratefulâ€, while leaving the victim no space and exemplifying controlling behavior. An important step in those situations is understanding that this is in fact not the norm, and thus should be addressed. A relationship should be a safe space of trust and commitment, and understanding the situation is often the first step of improving said issue. This is why the idea behind this project was, that if someday someone would see this picture and identify themselves with it, they’d start to question their situation and perhaps reach out to talk to someone.
