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Cervine: Out of Darkness

Artist: Shannon Thomas

Exhibits open during Art Walk on the 1st Friday of every month. 6pm-10pm

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Overview

Cervine: Out of Darkness is an ongoing series chronicling the artist’s journey towards healing and self acceptance after surviving rape and sexual assault. In 2016, during the immediate aftermath of one such experience, the artist created her first depiction of the cervine women as a metaphor for the ways in which she felt she had been hunted, targeted, and subjected to violence. The depiction of the head of a deer on the body of a woman created a striking and haunting image that echoed the ways in which the artist felt she had been dehumanized and reduced to nothing more than her sex at the same time that it created an image that was ethereal, disturbing, and powerful. Over the past decade, the imagery of the cervine women has continued to evolve as the artist has navigated various stages of recovery and healing. This collection of work stands as a testament of hope as it captures the depths of darkness during a journey towards the reclamation of bodily autonomy.
Each piece is created by beginning with an empty black surface, a symbol of the darkness of abuse, trauma, and the long road towards recovery. The paintings are created using a unique subtractive technique reminiscent of a classical underpainting. This is a statement both of how beauty can be carved from darkness and how the process of recovery is never truly finished.
Likewise created using white on black, the drawings show how the artist found light in a dark situation. Each drawing is inspired by classical works from artists such as Artemisia Gentileschi that depict women who have been sexualized such as Salome and Susanna or who have come to be known for their powerful rage and acts of revenge such as Judith. By revisiting these historical pieces next to paintings depicting her own personal journey, the artist situates her own story (and that of many contemporary women) of survival after rape and sexual assault within a greater narrative of the feminine experience throughout a patriarchal history.

Artist Bio:
Shannon Thomas is an emerging artist and tattoo apprentice living and working out of Woodstock, GA whose work focuses on exploring trauma, recovery, and the objectification of the female body. She received her BA in studio art and gender and women’s studies from Hollins University where she began painting subtractively as a comment on the ways in which both beauty and healing can emerge from darkness. As a survivor of rape and sexual assault, her work pulls heavily on her own experiences as she explores the ways in which art can serve as both an act of protest and an act of healing. Her work is held in private collections throughout the US, Canada, and the UK, and has been exhibited throughout the east coast.