Famished/Affamée

Galadriel Watson

Linocut
2023

The viewer is famished. Does she eat the cake to assuage this? Or is she famished because she does not?

This piece is a commentary on the pressure on women (or, actually, anyone) to stay thin. The cake is a temptation, a craving, but it is up to the viewer to decide whether it would be feasted upon or forsworn, whether it would be a resolution or a downfall. The pretty pale colours draw the viewer—yum!icing!—but the black stands as a barrier, the fork stabbed in. Which is a win? To consume or to deprive?

Instagram: @galadrielwatson
Website: galadrielwatson.com

Galadriel Watson

During a long career as a writer (for outlets like The New York Times and The Washington Post, alongside 24 children’s non-fiction books and the occasional published comic), Galadriel Watson recently decided to undertake a new creative outlet: linocutting. She adores the meditative aspect of the carving and finds it fascinating how the process adds so-called “flaws” during each step to create the unique, handmade final. Her works have been printed in publications like Wander Magazine, hélas! and A Bunch of Malvaceae.