Alicia Sampson Ethridge, Bent out of Shape
Alicia Sampson Ethridge (she/her)
Bent out of Shape, 2020
oil paint on canvas
43 inches by 60 inches
Bent Out of Shape shows a mother’s experience with raising children in the midst of a pandemic. Before March 2020 my children and I were actively creating new communities outside of our family. Our worlds were expanding. When COVID-19 hit our world contracted and my roles have become conflated. I am mother, playmate, teacher, snack repository, interpreter, protector, nurse, guide, anxiety monster, fellow daydreamer in a constantly changing landscape. The feelings from when I was new to motherhood such as literally being my children’s world, their sustenance and shelter around the clock with no respite or opportunity to shut down has come back to the forefront of our day to day pandemic experiences. Bent Out of Shape shows a mother tightly crammed into the confines of physical and emotional space. She contorts her own body and over extends herself to meet the needs of her young children.
@aliciaethridge