In a country where women lack bodily autonomy, and where extremist right-wing political parties advance conservative, neoliberal and patriarchal policies, it is essential to shed light on independent initiatives within civil society that routinely fight for women’s rights. It is under this influence that the feminist movements across Brazil demand: Legalize abortion! It is our body, it is our choice, it is for the lives of women!
If we are living through the rise of the feminist agenda, we are also living under the influence of religious-political leaders that appropriate and distort the discussion on the decriminalization of abortion. Negligence within our political forums causes women to suffer in every instance, from debates over their health to autonomy over their bodies.
Religious fundamentalists are increasing in every sphere of Brazilian government and society in recent years. Despite swearing oaths to uphold the constitution of a secular state, the activities of the senate and the congress have largely been unfavorable to the advancement of the rights of women. Since 2011, approximately 80% of the bills presented in Congress related to abortion have been focused on its criminalization.1
According to a study by the federal government, between 2016 and 2020, there were 8,665 abortions authorized by the courts in the country. This means that each of these terminations met at least one of the three legal criteria: when the fetus is anencephalic, when women became pregnant as a result of rape or when aborting a pregnancy is the only way to save the life of the pregnant person. Meanwhile, during this same period, Brazil’s health system, known as Sistema Único de Saúde (SUS), assisted a hundred times more women (877,863), who suffered miscarriages or complications from abortion procedures performed outside hospitals.2 It is estimated that approximately 500,000 abortions occur annually in Brazil.3
Given the current scenario, a broad group of feminists is organizing itself to fight for women’s self-determination concerning their bodies and reproductive choices. Founded in 2020 by filmmaker Juliana Reis, in the second year of a government marked by the growth of the anti-feminist movement, Milhas Pela Vida das Mulheres (Miles for Women’s Lives) is an initiative of mutual solidarity to help women who want to terminate their pregnancies safely and legally, removing financial and logistical barriers and providing information on this taboo subject. We are a network of women advocating for the decriminalization of abortion in Brazil, united under the motto: “Those who can, helping those who need it.”
In November 2020, the “Arte, Substantivo Feminino” (Art, Feminine Noun) project began with the intention to raise funds for Milhas and contribute to the debate on the decriminalization of abortion in Brazil through art. Art, Feminine Noun is an action conceived by the women’s workforce in the arts and aimed at safeguarding women’s reproductive rights. In Brazil, one in five women has had, or will have, at least one abortion by the age of 40.4
Art, Feminine Noun has been developed in different ways: through fundraising for the activities of Milhas; through the presentation of artists in favor of decriminalizing abortion; through participation in debates on art and abortion; and in art fairs and artistic interventions in the gallery storefronts in downtown Rio de Janeiro with the hashtag #abortolegaleseguroparatodes (safe, legal abortion for all).
The exhibition Art for Women’s Lives, a phase of the project Art, Feminine Noun, is a new experience resulting from the commitment of this group of women artists who have been working together since November 2020. This multidisciplinary exhibition responds to the patriarchal oppression that has been colonizing women’s bodies for centuries. Curated by Gabriela Davies, Maíra Marques and Paula Borghi, the project presents works by 23 visual artists who demonstrate that abortion affects women across diverse demographics. However different the artists are, if one of the foundations of feminist thought is the statement that “all women are oppressed,” it means that they all share a common experience.
Whether through the idea of bodily imprisonment suggested in Agrade Camíz’s sculpture (window bars enclosing a mirror so the viewer can see herself between the bars) or in the video installation Cam Girl by Aleta Valente (in which the artist presents clinical examinations of an endoscopy and a hysteroscopy) the force of oppression is visible in the works presented in the exhibition. Referring to the practice of “cam girls,” in which women receive payments to produce intimate videos of their bodies through webcam chats, Aleta presents the image of the interior of her body, to contradict the objectified image to which women are often tethered.
Contributing to the critique of the fetishization and objectification of the female body, Débora Bolsoni presents O inferno de boazinha, a sculpture that treats a pleated school uniform skirt as a curtain that can be opened and closed. The work awakens viewers to a perverse narrative that foregrounds the hypersexualization of girls. In Brazil, girls under the age of 14 are legally permitted to access abortion, as they are considered too young to consent to sex, and thus these pregnancies fall within the realm of statutory rape and sexual violence.5 Despite this protective measure, in 2019 fewer than 2,000 legal abortion procedures were performed in the country (on women of all ages), while in the same year there were 19,330 births by girls who could have legally accessed this right. Every 30 minutes in 2019, a girl aged 10 to 14-years old became a mother.
Addressing the demographic intersections and cross sections of gender abuse in Brazil, Juliana dos Santos’ photograph, Catirina, references an enslaved character from Brazilian folklore. Applying black paint over a portrait of her face, the artist draws attention to the essentializing and demeaning practice of blackface, which has been used for years in folk ceremonies in the depiction of black characters. Even in a country where the majority of the population is non-white, structural racism is present, one of its direct consequences being the fact that Black and Indigenous women are the main victims of femicide, domestic violence, obstetric violence and unsafe abortions. It is worth mentioning that what kills is not the act of abortion itself, but the vulnerability created by the hazardous conditions of clandestine abortion.6
Speaking further to the structural violence experienced by Black women, Kalor presents the video Abortion Certificate, which she performed following a miscarriage that she suffered. At the time, the public health system contested whether the miscarraige had been spontaneous or caused by the artist, questioning the veracity of a woman’s claims regarding her own body. As if the violence of this questioning were not enough, the artist experienced severe neglect and mistreatment during the curettage process; as though this were a punishment for the miscarriage she had suffered. This trauma was recorded in an article written by the artist for her city’s newspaper, as well as realized in her performance and this video.
Recognizing and modifying social patterns and systems of oppression is an ongoing task. It is with this awareness that Art, Feminine Noun strengthens the awareness and importance of legal, safe and free abortion through art. We consider this an ongoing, aggregating, expansive, and permanent project, active until every person has the non-negotiable human right to determine if, when, and how they create a family. As Caroline Valansi emphasizes in her work, gender must be treated with attention in moments of great social stress. It is by believing in this that we move forward together and without fear.
Milhas Pela Vida das Mulheres
Open Call Exhibition
© apexart 2023
If we are living through the rise of the feminist agenda, we are also living under the influence of religious-political leaders that appropriate and distort the discussion on the decriminalization of abortion. Negligence within our political forums causes women to suffer in every instance, from debates over their health to autonomy over their bodies.
Religious fundamentalists are increasing in every sphere of Brazilian government and society in recent years. Despite swearing oaths to uphold the constitution of a secular state, the activities of the senate and the congress have largely been unfavorable to the advancement of the rights of women. Since 2011, approximately 80% of the bills presented in Congress related to abortion have been focused on its criminalization.1
According to a study by the federal government, between 2016 and 2020, there were 8,665 abortions authorized by the courts in the country. This means that each of these terminations met at least one of the three legal criteria: when the fetus is anencephalic, when women became pregnant as a result of rape or when aborting a pregnancy is the only way to save the life of the pregnant person. Meanwhile, during this same period, Brazil’s health system, known as Sistema Único de Saúde (SUS), assisted a hundred times more women (877,863), who suffered miscarriages or complications from abortion procedures performed outside hospitals.2 It is estimated that approximately 500,000 abortions occur annually in Brazil.3
Given the current scenario, a broad group of feminists is organizing itself to fight for women’s self-determination concerning their bodies and reproductive choices. Founded in 2020 by filmmaker Juliana Reis, in the second year of a government marked by the growth of the anti-feminist movement, Milhas Pela Vida das Mulheres (Miles for Women’s Lives) is an initiative of mutual solidarity to help women who want to terminate their pregnancies safely and legally, removing financial and logistical barriers and providing information on this taboo subject. We are a network of women advocating for the decriminalization of abortion in Brazil, united under the motto: “Those who can, helping those who need it.”
In November 2020, the “Arte, Substantivo Feminino” (Art, Feminine Noun) project began with the intention to raise funds for Milhas and contribute to the debate on the decriminalization of abortion in Brazil through art. Art, Feminine Noun is an action conceived by the women’s workforce in the arts and aimed at safeguarding women’s reproductive rights. In Brazil, one in five women has had, or will have, at least one abortion by the age of 40.4
Art, Feminine Noun has been developed in different ways: through fundraising for the activities of Milhas; through the presentation of artists in favor of decriminalizing abortion; through participation in debates on art and abortion; and in art fairs and artistic interventions in the gallery storefronts in downtown Rio de Janeiro with the hashtag #abortolegaleseguroparatodes (safe, legal abortion for all).
The exhibition Art for Women’s Lives, a phase of the project Art, Feminine Noun, is a new experience resulting from the commitment of this group of women artists who have been working together since November 2020. This multidisciplinary exhibition responds to the patriarchal oppression that has been colonizing women’s bodies for centuries. Curated by Gabriela Davies, Maíra Marques and Paula Borghi, the project presents works by 23 visual artists who demonstrate that abortion affects women across diverse demographics. However different the artists are, if one of the foundations of feminist thought is the statement that “all women are oppressed,” it means that they all share a common experience.
Whether through the idea of bodily imprisonment suggested in Agrade Camíz’s sculpture (window bars enclosing a mirror so the viewer can see herself between the bars) or in the video installation Cam Girl by Aleta Valente (in which the artist presents clinical examinations of an endoscopy and a hysteroscopy) the force of oppression is visible in the works presented in the exhibition. Referring to the practice of “cam girls,” in which women receive payments to produce intimate videos of their bodies through webcam chats, Aleta presents the image of the interior of her body, to contradict the objectified image to which women are often tethered.
Contributing to the critique of the fetishization and objectification of the female body, Débora Bolsoni presents O inferno de boazinha, a sculpture that treats a pleated school uniform skirt as a curtain that can be opened and closed. The work awakens viewers to a perverse narrative that foregrounds the hypersexualization of girls. In Brazil, girls under the age of 14 are legally permitted to access abortion, as they are considered too young to consent to sex, and thus these pregnancies fall within the realm of statutory rape and sexual violence.5 Despite this protective measure, in 2019 fewer than 2,000 legal abortion procedures were performed in the country (on women of all ages), while in the same year there were 19,330 births by girls who could have legally accessed this right. Every 30 minutes in 2019, a girl aged 10 to 14-years old became a mother.
Addressing the demographic intersections and cross sections of gender abuse in Brazil, Juliana dos Santos’ photograph, Catirina, references an enslaved character from Brazilian folklore. Applying black paint over a portrait of her face, the artist draws attention to the essentializing and demeaning practice of blackface, which has been used for years in folk ceremonies in the depiction of black characters. Even in a country where the majority of the population is non-white, structural racism is present, one of its direct consequences being the fact that Black and Indigenous women are the main victims of femicide, domestic violence, obstetric violence and unsafe abortions. It is worth mentioning that what kills is not the act of abortion itself, but the vulnerability created by the hazardous conditions of clandestine abortion.6
Speaking further to the structural violence experienced by Black women, Kalor presents the video Abortion Certificate, which she performed following a miscarriage that she suffered. At the time, the public health system contested whether the miscarraige had been spontaneous or caused by the artist, questioning the veracity of a woman’s claims regarding her own body. As if the violence of this questioning were not enough, the artist experienced severe neglect and mistreatment during the curettage process; as though this were a punishment for the miscarriage she had suffered. This trauma was recorded in an article written by the artist for her city’s newspaper, as well as realized in her performance and this video.
Recognizing and modifying social patterns and systems of oppression is an ongoing task. It is with this awareness that Art, Feminine Noun strengthens the awareness and importance of legal, safe and free abortion through art. We consider this an ongoing, aggregating, expansive, and permanent project, active until every person has the non-negotiable human right to determine if, when, and how they create a family. As Caroline Valansi emphasizes in her work, gender must be treated with attention in moments of great social stress. It is by believing in this that we move forward together and without fear.
Milhas Pela Vida das Mulheres
Open Call Exhibition
© apexart 2023