colored pencil, marker, ink; 11×14”
“My art piece is about Body Image in the Media. We are all the same underneath the skin. My bust, drawn from the collar bone up means to emphasize that body shaming doesn’t happen to just women, but also to men and other genders. The flower crown represents beauty in people, each flower representing a person. The toe tags with different clothing sizes on the flowers symbolize how clothing size can sometimes be a social death sentence. My piece relates to Article 1 of Human Rights, Right to Equality, and to Article 2: Freedom from Discrimination. I myself grew up with the influence of the “perfect body type”, and as a plus sized woman it has heavily affected me throughout my life. I grew up thinking I was ugly and broken because my hips were too wide or I wasn’t shaped like the other girls in my class. I was bullied throughout grade school for my body size, because I was seen as “fat” while the contents of my brain went unseen. Of course, I’ve learned to love myself for who I am, and I now appreciate all of my “flaws” society gives me.”
BIO: Sophia Linkous is a Grade 12 student at Butler Tech School of Art (SOA).
PROJECT: After learning about human rights in Mrs. Valerie Folz’ Government classes at Butler Tech School of the Arts, 45 high school students chose a human rights issue they wanted to research. Then in Mrs. Mary Catherine Ruby’s Visual Art + Design classes they visually communicated their voice through their art using symbolic imagery to represent the human rights issue they had selected.