Los Lonely Girls.. What I would love to do with the Ladies!

The year was 2004 and I was recovering from the loss of my dad and a long illness. I decided that I was tired of  the media portraying woman as this unrealistic toothpicks that never aged. I wanted to let woman see that they were beautiful, aged beautifully and celebrate their inner strength. So I painted 20 paintings. Oils on paper.

See the online exhibit at this link:
Los Lonely Girls

I choose Oils because traditionally it is the medium that lasts the longest in doors (next to stone sculpture). However, I choose heavy watercolor paper because of its fragile state that actually mimics the historic significance of the contributions of woman and the frailness of their daily lives. 

I also made an important choice as to how to portray them. I choose to show them in intimate private moments where they were hiding away from the drama and demands of daily life. Alone with their thoughts trying to figure out this survival. I had actually wanted to do more than Hispanic, Native and White women in this portrayal,  however none of the women of  African-American decent would agree. This is important too because it also documents the self-image and lack of confidence that so many woman have. Especially women who have been fighting the fight of raising children alone, acting as sole caregiver for aging family members, as well as acting breadwinner and head of household for a number of family members who have chosen not to work or who are plagued with addictions.

There are a number of women who contributed to my own understanding of what it is like to be poor and working class in America with little opportunity to make good choices and yet they persevere. I thank them for their tolerance and patience with me and their friendship.

What I would love to do with the series is to show it and sell it to develop a mentoring program to help women find their way, to make not only good choices, but even better choices so they can find their voices, and use their talents to shine.

If you or your company is interested in sponsoring this exhibit please contact me at  info@llmartin.com for more details. Just type "Los Lonely Girls" in the subject line. The entire collection is available for sale  or it can be sold separately.