Stencil

I wasn’t sure what to make a stencil of, but I knew I wanted to make a strong image. I decided to make a hummingbird because I have an affinity with them so I made one with a speech scroll over her head. To me, this hummingbird represents resilience and focus. In some cultures, hummingbirds are and have been associated with warriors and protectors. This bird stencil reminds me that making art can be challenging as we dig deep to develop work that is meaningful and purpose-driven. The speech scroll is also very significant because it is a Mexica glyphic that refers to speech, song or poetry. In this way, the bird and speech scroll begin to weave a narrative of a strong warrior bird singing or humming.

I also made a stencil of a vagina with two speech scrolls on its sides. I really like this image of the vagina because it’s very beautiful and flowery. I think it is also a strong image that refers to feminine power and anatomy—the power within. The speech scrolls in this image function as a way to give speech to the vagina as if it could address us directly in song or poetry, while it simultaneously addresses us visually.