Madonna Complex Explores Misogyny in Art

As a young woman trying to navigate the adult world I often find it difficult to express my sexuality in a way that is deemed socially acceptable. From a young age through schooling and modern society I’ve been told I can be one of two things either a mother or a lover. 

I wanted to explore how the “Madonna Complex” drew this divide between the good girls and the “sluts” and create something for the girls who want to be both, because let's face it this theory is specifically gendered and has been since the biblical times, it’s another agent put in place by men to control women. We see this in pop culture continuously and is normalised every time, for example The Soprano’s shows Tony’s wife being a mother and a domestic goddess where as Tony has affairs which are justified with women who are stereotypically sexy, young and single - this is a perfect example of the mother and the lover trope. Typically a baby is born ‘naturally’, through the birth canal, prior to her giving birth, a partner may have seen a woman’s vulva as something to be desired, a place to play and enjoy for themselves. After giving birth, this view can change to become purer as their partner’s vulva becomes the thing that gives life, something related to their child rather than to sex and pleasure.

I think as an artist who prides herself off being vulgar I have always struggled to be taken seriously in a male dominated industry which is mostly censored on social media so really this series is my own personal projection of my frustrations around censorship and misogyny.I don’t want to be pigeonholed into just a daughter, a lover or a colleague, I want to be multidimensional and unapologetically myself without gender norms and heteronormativity restraining me like one big aggressive straight man.

Words & Art: Meg Mcwilliam