“Too often, these icons reduce women to their looks or a narrow set of artistic abilities. But women like human rights activist, author, and Nobel Peace Prize laureate Nadia Murad defy those shallow constraints,” says the artist. Photo by Brandon Michael Gray via uphere.com
A new mural of Nobel Peace Prize laureate Nadia Murad that was unveiled recently in Montreal, Que., seeks to challenge the way icons are obsessed over in popular culture. The artist, MissMe—whose work is considered “feminist guerilla”—says the portrait is part of her ongoing “Layers of a Woman” series.
“Too often, these icons reduce women to their looks or a narrow set of artistic abilities. But women like human rights activist, author, and Nobel Peace Prize laureate Nadia Murad defy those shallow constraints. Her story isn’t just one of survival—it’s one of unimaginable strength, resilience, and a relentless commitment to her community after enduring horrors most can’t even fathom,” MissMe said. The artist believes icons “should represent something more” and “inspire us to aim higher, to recognize the depth and power within every woman”.
Murad, an Iraqi-born Yazidi human rights activist, was held as a sex slave by ISIS for several months in 2014. After her release, she has become a powerful voice for survivors of genocide and sexual violence. Her advocacy focuses on raising awareness about the atrocities faced by women and children in genocides, mass atrocities, and human trafficking, and helping those who have faced such violence. She and Congolese gynecologist Denis Mukwege were jointly awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for “their efforts to end the use of sexual violence as a weapon of war and armed conflict”.
People like Murad are the “embodiment of going beyond the expected, beyond what anyone thought possible. She isn’t just a figure to admire; she’s a force that reshapes our understanding of what women can achieve”, says MissMe.
MissMe says through my work, she wants women to “take up more space”. She adds, “We’ve been confined for too long; it’s time we expand, take up space, and demand to be seen for all we are.” MissMe says she “strives to repeat a simple message, a real cry of the heart: a call to the empowerment of women, solidarity and mobilization”.
Original story link: https://uphere.com/2024-missme
The artist, MissMe—whose work is considered “feminist guerilla”—says the portrait is part of her ongoing “Layers of a Woman” series.
