[Image Description: The image depicts a portrait of a black woman nursing her child, who has a light brown afro and appears to be about 2 years old. The woman is wearing a black tank and skirt, and the child she is cradling on her lap is naked. The heads of both mother and child are each framed by a gold halo.]
I am now the proud owner of this breathtakingly gorgeous piece of art.
The artist’s name is Kate Hansen, and this piece, “Gladys and Elizabeth,” is part of her Madonna and Child project. While there are several portraits in the series, this piece seems to be the only one that she is selling prints of (which I am thankful for, since this is the one that I like best by far, although the others are also beautiful).
There are several things about this portrait that speak to me, as a black mother and as a lactivist. First, as I’ve mentioned before, I’m generally a little frustrated with the very limited selection of non-white breastfeeding art that is out there. It also makes me feel warm and fuzzy to see a black mother-child dyad depicted so lovingly; I sometimes feel bombarded by the onslaught of images and stories in the media that frame black motherhood as being naturally dysfunctional, and therefore detrimental to not only the involved family members, but to society at large.
It’s also wonderful to see a child other than a newborn or infant nursing. Even among pro-breastfeeding literature and resources, there seems to be a shortage of images normalizing the act of nourishing or comforting a toddler at the breast. Take note the next time you see an ad or public service announcement that is geared toward encouraging parents to breastfeed – when is the last time you saw one of those PSAs featuring a contented toddler snuggling, nomming, or sleeping at the breast?
I also love that Elizabeth, the child, is sporting a natural ‘do; and while you wouldn’t expect to see a child her age with a perm anyway, it still seems somehow more refreshing and organic to see a black child with her hair completely unrestrained, untied, and allowed to fully blossom, without even a bow to distract from the power and beauty of her kinks. To me, Elizabeth’s nakedness reinforces the reality of her dependence and the necessity of her trust in her mother. It’s also nice to see a reminder that I’m not the only parent who nurses my child while either of us is in various states of undress.
The halos are a wonderful touch, especially to a woman like myself who has, in every other single piece of similar art, only ever seen halos framing the heads of very white women and their very white babies. Black motherhood, as I’ve mentioned before, is so frequently dismissed as dangerous – or, at best, inadequate – and to see it depicted here as not merely loving and desirable, but also holy…well, it gives me chills, even as person who identifies very strongly as an atheist.
Some day, when I have my own private practice, I intend for this portrait to be one of the first things that my clients see when they walk through the door. I can only hope that they will appreciate and take as much comfort from it as I do.
Edited to add: Thankfully, I was wrong about “Gladys and Elizabeth” being the only print available for sale. Here is Kate’s clarification:
I do offer prints of some of the other portraits, but I only offer a high quality giclee of this one. I just don’t have the money to make a file for the rest. The other prints are from digital photographs, so they can onl…y be printed up in a small size or they lose resolution.
Tags: art, breastfeeding, children of color, gladys and elizabeth, kate hansen, lactivism, women of color
October 25, 2010 at 11:59 am |
This is also my favorite piece in Kate’s Madonna and Child series. One day, I also hope to own a print.
October 25, 2010 at 4:20 pm |
I got the $25 one (5 by 7 inches), but I hope to be able to get a bigger print someday for my (not-yet-existent) office.
Also I may someday commission a portrait from her, but I’m undecided (and broke).
October 26, 2010 at 4:44 pm |
I know Kate was looking for more models for the series. Blacktating wrote about it here: http://www.blacktating.com/2010/06/breastfeeding-portrait-art-by-kate.html. You’d get a free small print of the portrait in return.
October 26, 2010 at 5:14 pm |
You are officially MY HERO!!! I hope that she’s still looking for models, I’m going to email Kate now!
October 25, 2010 at 4:02 pm |
This print is gorgeous and so profoundly inspiring. I am also loving your writing and having a bit of a crush on your blog – thank you so much for sharing your perspective!
October 25, 2010 at 4:20 pm |
Haha, you’re very welcome! 🙂
October 25, 2010 at 7:38 pm |
I love what you wrote about this portrait! It’s so true about nursing a toddler in various states of (un)dress. It’s beautiful to see her work appreciated so! She is incredibly talented. I have one she did of me and my son and it is one of my most favourite things.
October 26, 2010 at 9:07 am |
That’s awesome! I hope to have one done of me and Eve eventually.
October 25, 2010 at 10:33 pm |
Holy moses dude, that totally took my breath away. I ESPECIALLY love those halos – they’re muted and just really intensely beautiful. After I read the first paragraph my first thought was “She needs to have one of her and Eve done!!!!”
October 26, 2010 at 9:07 am |
I’ve definitely been considering it, but it would be waaaay out of my price range for a while. But I would eventually like to commission a portrait of Eve and me.
October 26, 2010 at 5:19 am |
[…] Gladys and Elizabeth [She Has My Eyes] […]
October 26, 2010 at 10:54 pm |
Thanks for sharing this lovely painting. I’ll look into ordering a print.
Also, kindly add me to your email subscription.
Thank you!
October 27, 2010 at 6:44 am |
I don’t think I have the ability to add you manually. To subscribe, all you’ve got to do is click the button in the sidebar on the right beneath my archives!
October 28, 2010 at 4:19 am |
Hey,
Thank you for posting this! It’s beautiful and it’s possibly as close as I’ll get to having a picture of my son nursing ; ) He’s blond and quite pink but we share curly hair and almond eyes and he sure never questions the fact I’m his mother, unlike outsiders, and the fact that I’m still nursing him (he’s 3 in a month).
And everything you say feels right… except maybe for black motherhood but it’s possibly because I’m half African so I heavily relied on positive images of black women nursing when I felt pressured by my mostly white european environment.
October 28, 2010 at 8:51 am |
Congrats on having a long and happy nursing relationship with your son! 🙂