I am now offering a set of Madonna and Child cards just in time for Christmas! It is a set of 10 beautiful madonnas, each different, with the following poem excerpt from Christina Rossetti's "In a Bleak Midwinter": Enough for Him, whom cherubim Worship night and day, A breastful of milk And a mangerful of hay The cost is only $25.00 per set of ten cards, or $5.00 per card, shipping not included. This is a special price for the Christmas Season. Please message me through the contact part of this site, by email, or by facebook. You can pay by paypal, but I need to know how much to charge for shipping first.
All the best! -Kate
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This portrait is most especially for Michelle Tarrant Williams, a tribute the loss of her son Sawyer Erik Williams. However it is also for all the women who have lost a child or miscarried a baby. During October, we remember all babies born sleeping, or whom we have carried but never met, those we have held but could not take home, or the ones that came home but didn't stay.
The virgin heard these words from her innocent child: "Mother, behold your son." The virgin saw her son saying: "It is finished," and thus the sword pierced her soul. -Stabat iuxta Christi crucem This is my latest Madonna and Child portrait, a beautiful mother and baby that I met thanks to Elita of Blactating Blog. I want to give a big thanks to Stephanie for modelling, and Elita for putting the call out for more African American models. I so appreciate it.
I just had my profile photo removed today by Facebook. If there's any speculation that this removed photo might actually be obscene, please see below and judge for yourself. This is a photo of me standing in front of my painting titled "Ailen and Jet Jazz." This was at the National Exhibition for the Canadian Institute of Portrait Artists this Septemeber, in which I won "Most Innovative Portrait."
This is the note from Facebook that I received this morning: Hello, You uploaded a photo that violates our Terms of Use, and this photo has been removed. Facebook does not allow photos that attack an individual or group, or that contain nudity, drug use, violence, or other violations of the Terms of Use. These policies are designed to ensure Facebook remains a safe, secure and trusted environment for all users, including the many children who use the site. If you have any questions or concerns, you can visit our FAQ page at http://www.facebook.com/help/?topic=wphotos. The Facebook Team So, as you probably know... my account was deleted from Facebook after about ten minutes of posting a breastfeeding photo. (It was re-instated the evening of October 1st.) September 30th at about 8:30 am I posted a status photo of myself breastfeeding my daughter, in solidarity with Emma Kwasnica who had had her entire profile deleted after posting similar photos. At about 8:45 I was prompted to log in while commenting on my status photo, I attempted to log in, but was unable to. It said that my account had been disabled for posting content that violated facebook regulations. So what are the regulations they speak of? In the Chicago Tribune company spokesperson Barry Schnitt stated: "We've made a visible areola the determining factor. It is a common standard." Yet, if you look at a close up of the photo in question you will notice that there is no visable areola. So what exactly is their reason for photo deletion? Do you think I would have been removed if I were wearing a bathing suit which was showing the same amount of skin? Another interesting aspect was the fact this was actually my FIRST snapshot posted which was not art related. All the other posts, including the photograph by Catherine Opie, were art related. The paintings which got removed back in April were all my own, and a facebook spokesperson told reporter Antonia Zerbisias of the Toronto Star that it had been a "mistake," that my paintings had been "accidentally removed." If that were the case why was my entire account deleted within ten minutes of posting a breastfeeding photo, which, by their own standards, contained nothing obscene? Here is another close-up. Once again no visable areola. What is the common denominator in these images? You've got it- they are all breastfeeding images. It seems that Facebook, a massive powerful corporation, has determined that breastfeeding is obscene, and that children need to be protected from it. As a Canadian I know that my breastfeeding rights are protected under the Charter of Rights. Breastfeeding is protected in most of the United States as well. Why then are we letting a for profit corperation determine our rights for us? Why are we letting a corporation decide what we can and cannot see? I think this problem is not only breastfeeding related. I also question the areola rule. Why is it that visable areola is obscene? Does context have nothing to do with the rule? It seems a shame to say that women's nipples are "dirty" or obscene, when that's what we put into an innocent baby's mouth. What about them can possibly be obscene in that context? Below is breastfeeding featured in a Mr. Rogers clip. I guess no one thought to protect the children from the obscene areolas in this one. My entire account was deleted from facebook this morning. If you know my history at all, you know that I've had photos removed numerous times from facebook, because of perceived indecency. My photos thus far were all art related, because I feel inspired by motherhood, nursing, and the human figure. I love breastfeeding art; I think it's a wonderful female perspective on figurative art, and I continued posting it despite repeated warnings. You might also remember that I was featured by a few different media sources concerning these early removals of my paintings. Here is my interview with Sheila Coles on CBC, "The Story from Here", (just go to "listen, part two.) Here is also the article written in the Toronto Star on the subject of my facebook deletions. This morning I heard more details on the fact that fellow breastfeeding advocate Emma Kwasnica had her account deleted, and I felt so angry. I also felt ashamed- because, although I have posted many breastfeeding paintings, and although I am a huge advocate for breastfeeding, I had never had the courage to post a photo of myself breastfeeding. I've always been a little shy about my own body. This is a fact that may surprise you, since I've painted a few nude self portraits, and since I used to pose for life drawing classes, but I never felt very brave about posting breastfeeding photos of myself. This morning I felt ashamed. I looked at Emma's photo, and remembered ALL her smiling, gorgeous photos, remembered her humour and thoughtful advice... and I thought I have been SUCH a chicken. I felt ashamed for never posting a breastfeeding photo of myself. SO, I posted this photo as my profile picture. I was just in the process of discussing it with some friends when I was asked to re-log in. I tried to and failed. My account was deleted, and with it many contacts and friends that I am now trying to get back in touch with. It happened so fast I couldn't believe it. I feel more upset than I thought I would. I feel like I've lost a limb. I've lost a lot of people with my facebook account, many people I knew from childhood and have NO idea how to get back in touch with. So friends- my first request (if you haven't already,) please get in touch with me through this webpage. Thanks to talented artist Amy Swagman there is a group on Facebook to get my account re-instated. Please join this group, "Bring Kate Hansen Back." If you're familiar with art on facebook you might notice that there are many beautiful nude artworks by many many artists. Why are breastfeeding portraits being targeted for removal? I think there is some sexism involved in these removals. I believe that the female perspective is being denied and marginalized by these actions. The breastfeeding mother is a very specifically female perspective on the breast, since it doesn't involve men at all. Perhaps some hatered of breastfeeding women stems from the fact that (some) men feel visually excluded from the nursing dyad; the woman in question is not exposing her breasts for male pleasure, in fact she seems oblivious to the male gaze. Another photo I uploaded which led to my recent deletion was this one. It's a piece by lesbian artist Catherine Opie, titled "Self Portrait/Nursing." This photograph was almost immediately removed from my fansite and I received the usual letter from Facebook, saying it was "Hateful, Threatening and/or Obscene." In a recent article by popular the popular Blacktating blog, Elita stated that the same photo was removed when a friend of hers posted it on her page. I venture to guess that more than nudity prompted this removal. This woman, a lesbian mother and not petite, is not the typical nude which facebook is willing to promote. She falls outside of the heterosexual male dominated paradigm that we're accustomed to seeing, and facebook is intolerant of that. Finally I want to thank all the friends who have joined in the campaign against my removal. Amy Swagman has been incredibly helpful to me by creating and managing the group I mentioned. Krista Cornish Scott has been phoning me, talking to me and supporting me, so many mothers and women on twitter have expressed their outrage and support. My mother Molly Barber has been incredibly helpful, even looking after my kids today while I write this. I feel so loved and supported by all of you, and I'm incredibly grateful for that. I was at the 2010 National Exhibition for the Canadian Institute of Portrait Artists at Mount Royal University in Calgary yesterday evening. I had enough airmiles to fly from Comox to Calgary with my kids, stay with family and attend the exhibition, in which I had entered my portrait called "Ailen and Jet-Jazz." I was glad to have a glass of wine, have a night out without my kids, and meet some wonderful artists at the exhibition. I met Jean Pederson, who is a fabulous Canadian portrait artist. She had entered a beautiful watercolour called "Paper Rose." Ingrid Christiansen is another wonderful figurative artist that I knew from facebook, and was finally able to meet in person. She was actually one of the judges for the event. Soon everyone gathered around as they announced the prizes for the exhibition. I was hoping I might win for "Excellence in Portraiture using Combined Media." Mine was one of the only portraits using combined media, so I thought I might have a chance in this category. I thought "Oh well." when they announced "Little Pirate," a beautiful encaustic painting by Judy Hilgemann. Then the award for "Most Innovative Portrait..." they announced Kate Hansen! I couldn't believe it. There was a moment I thought my knees might give out as I accepted the award. Jean Pederson's work won for "Excellence in Watercolour," so we were both included in the winning artist's photo below. Here's me looking very happy indeed to be included in such a prestigeous group of artists. It was some night.
I just got in from an airplane trip with my one and a half year old and my three year old. Although it wasn't a long flight, I was really dreading it because I was flying by myself... with two kids. Anyone who has kids understands what amount of gear they come with, as much as you might try to pack light! Here are some essentials which I found extremely useful on our journey.
10. Hoodies- Airplanes can be cold, hoodies are warm and comfortable. You can sleep in them with no discomfort. 9. Small toy airplane- This came in quite useful for explaining what was going on: i.e. the airplane is taking off, the airplane is in some turbulence, the airpane is landing. 8. Baby Wipes- I prefer to use washcloths at home, but baby wipes proved to be indispensable on the airplane, partly to clean the sticky fingers due to... 7. Snacks- This might be fairly obvious, but I was very thankful to have lunch packed, as well as a container of fresh strawberries. It helps pass the time, and most airlines don't serve lunch anymore. 6. Picture books- my favourites are In the Night Kitchen by Maurice Sendeck, A Glorious Day, by Amy Schwartz, and On a Wintry Morning by Dori Chaconas. 5. A Broad Repertoire of Songs- This may annoy other passengers on board, but songs are an excellent way of boosting morale and keeping kids occupied. 4. Hand puppets- literally. If you have a pen, even a ball point pen, you can draw a simple face onto your closed fist. Just make the closed part between your first finger and your thumb into the mouth, and draw two eyes above it. This puppet can be combined with the previously mentioned repertoire of songs, for maximum annoyance for surrounding passengers, and maximum enjoyment by your children. 3. Maya Sling- This one is very close to the top 10 most useful item for travelling with a baby. I found my sling indispensable. I used it to carry my daughter and keep my hands free for bags and to hold my son's hand. It can also double as a blanket for a tired child, and a nursing cover, if you feel you need one. In a pinch you could even rig it as an extra carry on bag. 2. Lots of Liquids- Unfortunately the new security regulations make it very difficult to provide enough liquid for your children. You cannot bring water or juice onto the plane, but instead need to rely on the airline staff to provide it for you. This means you need to make yourself into a royal pain by demanding larger portions of water, insisting on refills and otherwise annoying the staff as well as other passengers. Of course for younger children there is another source of liquid... which leads to.... 1. Two Functioning Breasts- The top most important item for travel with two young children is a pair of functioning breasts. It's common knowledge that the best way to combat the effects of the change in pressure from landing and taking off is by sucking on something. What could be more handy or more versatile than breastfeeding? If you're not breastfeeding you might want to bring a teething toy, a bottle, or some kind of suck-able food item for older kids. If you happen to be seated beside Barbara Walters just make sure to paste a warm smile on your face, and an armory of breastfeeding slogans on your lips. You have just as much right to breastfeed as your neighbour has to eat in the seat next to you. More in fact, since if you were to cease it might result in a screaming nightmare for every passenger on the flight. It might do well to remind people that on flight breastfeeding is in their own best interests for this reason. I had some wonderful news recently. I found out I'm participating in a group show called "Mothers" at the Woman Made Gallery in Chicago. My drawing "Gladys and Elizabeth" will be showing alongside other wonderful up and coming female artists on the 5th of November until December 23rd. Best of all... I'm going to Chicago! I'm going to leave the kids with their wonderful father and hop a flight to the windy city! I'm going to stay a few days, see a few sights, hop a few galleries and attend my own opening. I'm SO thrilled! I will be blogging about all this, so stay tuned. My other good news is I was accepted into the Canadian Institute of Portrait Artists biannual exhibition! My piece "Ailen and Jet Jazz" will be exhibited at the Mount Royal University, second floor art gallery space at the Bisset School of Business. The show will be up from the 21st of September until October 30th. The best part of this news is that I have enough airmiles to take me AND the kids to Calgary for the opening and awards ceremony! Once again I'm thrilled. I will take lots of pictures and blog about it afterwards. To put myself in the mood for Chicago... here's one of my favourite Sinatra songs: |
A blog on art, roller derby and life.
Kate HansenI'm an artist and mother of two in Courtenay, BC. I've completed a project called the "Madonna and Child Project," and I'm now working on a series of roller derby inspired drawings. In my spare time I play roller derby with the Brick House Betties. Archives
November 2012
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