From the statues of Greek goddesses to the Renaissance paintings to modern art, the depiction of women in visual arts has come a long way. For a very long time, the world of art was dominated by what we call a ‘male gaze’ which didn’t always give the right idea of the female body image, but these times have changed. Today, we can see more and more female artists joining the field who managed to portray women in a more complex and powerful way.
Anna Kincaide is one of those artists. There is something truly fascinating about her work as she is hiding her women’s faces behind the giant floral headpieces. This is her way to make the viewer wonder who are these anonymous women and what are their stories?
Anna grew up in northern Florida. And this is where she lives and works today. Even though, she got a degree in interior and graphic design, she has always had a passion for fine arts and painting.
Leaving a career in design was a reckless idea indeed, but Anna was looking for something more fulfilling and meaningful, and she could see all the progress she was making with her art. Her hard work paid off, and to this day she’s certain she did the right thing.
She started out as a traditional portraitist, but then decided to focus more on body language. If you look at her art, you’ll see that she has never shown the faces in her works. Anna believes that when a part of a person’s face is hidden from the public eye, it gives a certain anonymity to the character. And we all know that people love anonymity. They love this mysterious thrill you get when you can imagine yourself or someone else as a character.
What’s with the flowers, you ask? It’s no secret that the flowers have always been a symbol of femininity and beauty. Just like the posture and gestures, flowers help to convey the mood and emotions as each headpiece has its own color palette, texture and form.
The avant-garde women of Anna Kincaide are empowering and beautiful. They hide their faces behind gorgeous flower hats so we can reflect on each of them in our own individual way.