I don’t know about you, but every piece of art I create is a piece of me somehow. My artwork is a snap of who I am at that precise moment of creation.
For my birthday a few months ago, a dear friend gifted me with one of those DNA kits. She knew it was essential for me to learn about my ancestry. This had been an obsession of mine for a while and I needed answers. As a woman, I only get one half really analyzed, but it’s still a lot of information. I discovered I am mostly made of 73.9% European (mostly western Europe) and about 24% from the West coast of Africa. And it means I am actually more White than Black, even though you first see the color of my skin when you look at me (don’t you?).
It took me a long time to be comfortable with my flesh. I grew up in an all-White family, without any siblings. And I did not want to bring the subject with my Mom because 1) not her fault 2) I didn’t want to sound like I was not grateful.
Faces are fascinating. And I love playing with different ways to convey racial differences with paint. You can see that in the following Nixies. It might not be obvious at first sight, but they are all of color to a certain degree.
I have two daughters, each has a skin tone of her own. My older is pale with a lot of freckles and hazel/green eyes; her sister is like warm caramel. But they both have african DNA running in their veins, you just don’t see it. These paintings are for them, too…
I love that you got an opportunity to sink into your flesh a little more, with a little more awareness of what it is made up.
Your nixies are beautiful. <3
Thank you for it. Deeply.
Nolwenn recently posted…Honoring my ancestors through my artwork
Knowing where I came from seems to add a dimension to who I am. I’m not sure why, but it sounds like the same is true for you. I appreciate that. This is a lovely piece of writing and lovely art, expressing something that just is. Thanks for writing it.
It does, I really needed to know more. And I was surprised by some of these results. My Mom is big on genealogy so I might jump in with her to see what we could find. I wish my father would do a test too, so I’d have even more info.
I’m so grateful to get to know you in this way. Your nixies are so cute. I especially love the first one with the star eye. And I like your expression of skin tone. beautiful.
Thank you, Amy, for your sweet comment, it goes straight to my heart. This Nixie you love is one of my favorites at the moment. I am surprised nobody bought her yet but eh the positive side is that I can enjoy her a bit longer 😉
I love your images and I appreciate hearing your story; women’s stories are so powerful and need to be shared!
I felt like I needed to talk about it, share how I feel when it comes to race and to paint it. Thank you for witnessing, Jessica.
When I look at you, I think you’re mixed race. Black (because of your hair) and something else. If I had to guess, I would have said either Spanish or Lebonese. How do you feel about being more white than black? I was a bit disappointed when I got my results and while I feel closer to my past, Im not sure it helps me define who I am. Love your art, always!
People ALWAYS try to figure out where I come from; it’s like they really want me to be from where they are in the world. I got asked if I was Lebanese, Moroccan, Algerian, Turkish, Brazilian… But why do people feel the need to put me in a box? It makes no sense to me.
Discovering I am more White than Black did not surprise me much; I think I have read that us women could not have the complete analysis and would need our father our brother to do the DNA test as well to have something more accurate. It feels strange though because people see the blackness first. And I never fit within the White community, but never completely fit within the Black community either, and this is a painful realization…
I am sorry that your own results did not bring what you were looking for.
One day, I hope to do mine. I only know what I’ve been told as far as what’s in my blood. Polish on my mom’s side, Polish and Ukrainian on my dad’s side. There may or may not be Austrian in there. I feel like there is more than the stories tell, but I don’t know what it is.
You are too beautiful for someone to stuff in a box. I hate that people try to do that to you, to me, to anyone.
I love your Nixies. They always bring a smile to my face.
I love, love, love your faces, skulls, and colors. Your work is beautiful.
Thank you SO much, Rhonda.
Nolwenn recently posted…Working hard, playing a lot, pushing limits
Purple, pink or teal, you and your work are beautiful and I’m so damn lucky to have you as a friend!
Thinking the exact same about you <3
Nolwenn recently posted…Working hard, playing a lot, pushing limits
All I see is a beautiful girl with stunning eyes! I was very lucky to talk both of my biological parents to do both Ancestry and 23andMe tests. It does help. I found out my dad IS the whitest man I know. Some things were shocking to me, but DNA is funny. I saw a tutorial on 3 Irish girls, and one 1 was REALLY MORE Irish than her 2 other sisters. It is funny how things are passed down. And family lore is different than reality some times. I didn’t know some of my DNA and I was shocked reading it. But some of it explained WHY I was so drawn to certain things or area’s in the world.
Your Nixies are beautiful. It can be important to know where you come from and I’m glad you have some of that information now. One day I’d love to learn more about all my ancestors and also where my family names came from.