At the center of the work Defloration stand flowers photographed by the artist during a family trip to Portugal. Nevertheless, the word “defloration” usually refers to the act of depriving a woman of her virginity by rupturing the hymen through sexual intercourse. A close look reveals that the pastoral photographs of flowers is actually a collage in which some of the flowers are actually photographs of hymens that have been surgically restored. Embroidered flowers are interspersed with the bare embroidered hymens.
“These flowers captured my attention because of the sensuality of the layers of their petals. I than replaced some of them with sad flowers of virginity restored by me to save the name and life of a young woman. By repairing the hymen, I help women survive but also perform an unnecessary and unneeded medical procedure thus helping in a way to establish wrong rituals.
Art helps me mend this, by embroidering over my surgery stiches I can express my voice and the many voices of women whom their torn hymens I repaired. I believe that with my art I can help making a global change in the attitude toward women, their sexuality, their right over their body and stopping acts such as genital mutilation and honor killings.”
