Women in Black

During our visit to Vimochana, a Bangalore-based women’s collective addressing both personal and systemic violence against women, I was deeply moved by their work. Inspired by Women in Black—a movement in India where women protested against hate crimes committed by Hindu nationalists in the name of faith, later expanding to address personal violence and systemic oppression—I created an artwork in response. Black, the color of resistance, became central to my visual language. Silence, often imposed on women, transforms into an expression of anguish and defiance. In exploring violence against women, I layered colors beneath black washes, signifying the suppression of voices and histories. Child-like crayon marks evoke the inner child that women carry within them—fragile yet resilient—while also symbolizing the endurance required to resist gendered violence, from patriarchal control within households to systemic issues in marriage and beyond.

At the heart of the composition, a woman’s face emerges from layers of mixed media, confronting power structures while reclaiming space. Through these elements, the piece interrogates violence not only as a personal ordeal but as a collective feminist struggle, urging us to witness, question, and resist.