lipstick kiss monoprint on face mask and priority mail cardboard; 10×10” with accompanying poem

Wearing a mask
is a political statement.
My body, my choice…
Pro-choice now refers to going out
and interacting as usual.

Maskless. hugging one another.
Collateral damage be damned;
you don’t think the virus will affect you.
“I’m a consenting adult,”
you say in defense of your decision.
“I won’t be controlled…”

But where does your consent end
and his, hers, theirs, ours… begin?
What of the long-term effects of isolation?
Caring about others’ well-being
is a political statement, same as always.

ARTIST BIO: Jennifer Weigel is a multi-disciplinary mixed media conceptual artist who utilizes a wide range of media to convey her ideas, including assemblage, drawing, fibers, installation, jewelry, painting, performance, photography, video and writing. Much of her work touches on themes of beauty, identity (especially gender identity), memory & forgetting, and institutional critique. Jennifer’s art has been exhibited nationally in all 50 states and has won numerous awards.