Natalie Schield - Museum

Affirmative Action by Jerry Kearns

This piece of art shows a powerful meaning in today's society, but also the past. It greatly connects with women who struggle in the work industry but also the city.
It first caught my eye when I noticed how the women in the painting looked a lot like Rosie the Riveter. I began to then look more closely at the painting and see that she was shoveling manure with a city scape behind her. For those of you who do not know, Rosie the Riveter was a female icon from World War II, standing for women who worked in factories and shipyards. With the phrase, "We Can Do It!" Rosie encouraged women around the world to be strong, and that they can do anything.
In present day America, we still struggle with feminism. How unfairly women are paid, how women are discouraged because what they want to do isn't a "female job," and the way women are treated in general. This interested me because it stands for what goes on today in America and gives its audience a sense of awareness to what women deal with. Women are hardworking, even though they get a lot of shit for it most of the time. Women push past everything they are going through to show that they are strong.
The location of the painting is in the modern art exhibit at Palmer. This is the perfect location because even though the painting uses a female figure from the past, it shows that in modern times, women still deal with struggles. The size shows how major the problem still stands. The color is brighter than most pieces in the exhibit, so it definitely stands out. If I were to own this piece, it would be displayed on the wall above my desk, always a reminder to keep working and push past anything that comes my way.
This piece replicates a combination of June Cleaver and Rosie the Riveter, according to the artist. It shows the women scooping manure in front of a bright red city scape that is illuminated by every window. The women appears larger than the city, and in black and white, something a normal eye slips past with a bright background such as this one. Just like in society, how men are constantly ignoring the fact that women are not equal to their gender. She is dressed in a "risky" outfit that goes against the public's "standards of dress code." The size of this image is something that your eye will not miss.