is a response to ex-votos Mexicanos with influence of religion, the detriment of strict gender roles, oppression, and control over women’s bodies in Mexico: my country.
Work in collaboration with M.A. Adriana Berardini, 2019.
Pieces by Anahí González
Text by Adriana Berardini
“The support of a cooking pan used for the ex-voto reflects a layered meaning of domestic violence. The votive also demonstrates the reinforcement of strict gender roles—the man has a toxic machismo, ordering around domestic demands, such as a hot meal, and ironed clothes, and the women’s role to successfully fulfill these domestic demands. The votive also points to the violence she regularly encounters if these are not fulfilled, attributing his good behaviour to the spiritual intervention granted from the Virgin of Guadalupe as opposed to an expectation of decency and respect from men.” - Adriana Berardini, 2019
“The statement on the ex-voto, is an example of a victim blaming statement, ascribing the belief that her pain of being sexually assaulted is attributed to her behaviour. There is a lack of accountability for an abuse of power and instead the girl is burdened with the sense of fault and an unexpected pregnancy at a young age. In unjust and confusing times such as these, a sense of hope is found through religion and the “Virgencita,” otherwise known as the Virgin of Guadalupe. The young girl’s childhood has been compromised and she looks towards the divine for a sense of reassurance and innocence through the ex-voto as an offering. Women are often mistreated in hospitals in the case of abortion for this reason, which causes many young women to keep their child.” - Adriana Berardini, 2019
“Again, the girl attributes her good fortune to divine intervention; the painting is made to replicate an ex-voto painting as an offering to the Virgin Guadalupe. The piece is made as a feminist response to the lack of safety in Mexico, particularly the lack of trust of offering a car-share service to the public, where young women are potentially a target for violence. With the rise of technology democratizing transportation, the issue of feminicide and violence against women becomes both prevalent and complex. This piece demonstrates the sense of unjust violence towards women that stems from their objectification in a patriarchal society.” - Adriana Berardini, 2019