Title
Pregnant Woman in a Ball of Yarn
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Graphic Arts
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This print is one of Barbara Carrasco’s first lithographs she made as a student at University of California, Los Angeles. With the design created over a single night, a woman is seen naked tied into a ball of yarn that emerges from her head. An umbilical cord of yarn then extends from the woman and becomes a baby stocking alongside a crochet needle.
When Carrasco found out her brother had told his wife she could not go to college because she was pregnant, the artist was furious. This shocked her as their mother was a very strong role model in their home. Depicting the confinement of women to motherhood, this piece was shared on social media after the 2022 reversal of Roe v. Wade. The woman’s hair restrains her body, which is also a symbol of limitations set by oneself. Behind the heteropatriarchal image is Carrasco’s lesson: “think about what you want in life and go after it, no matter what the odds are, no matter all the hardships you have to go through.” Her sister-in-law later went on to get a degree. (Author: Cal Zeman)
When Carrasco found out her brother had told his wife she could not go to college because she was pregnant, the artist was furious. This shocked her as their mother was a very strong role model in their home. Depicting the confinement of women to motherhood, this piece was shared on social media after the 2022 reversal of Roe v. Wade. The woman’s hair restrains her body, which is also a symbol of limitations set by oneself. Behind the heteropatriarchal image is Carrasco’s lesson: “think about what you want in life and go after it, no matter what the odds are, no matter all the hardships you have to go through.” Her sister-in-law later went on to get a degree. (Author: Cal Zeman)
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