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May this door be open for all women.
I was a teenager when my mother was diagnosed and treated for breast cancer. During the course of her chemotherapy I realised for the first time that my mother could die, that the possibility of her death was real, and that made me feel impotent and scared, and outside. On the other hand her attitude towards her body at this time made me aware of how much our bodies are fundamentally US/OURS, and how important it is as a woman to be empowered with knowledge to make decisions about our health rather than blindly follow "doctor's orders". As it is only us who FEEL what it is like to be inside our bodies only we can decide the course of action. For this I have depicted her alone in the room, holding on to HER breast, while the things she couldn't change, the fallen hair on the brush and the relatives lost to cancer in the past lay on the table, there is an open door for her. I believe research and medicine open this door. But it is care, resilience and love that help her into the other side of life. She is surviving cancer now 12 yeas and counting!
"mortality of mother"
oil on board 53x122 Cambridge 181202
Pont Street SW1 London
for
Epic Arts and
Breast Cancer Reaserch
SOLD
© Elena Arevalo Melville 2003
