Fearlessly Frida

FearlesslyFRIDA is a celebration of the colorful spirit of young feminists organizing around the world - pushing boundaries, breaking stereotypes and creating newer paths towards equality and justice for all. Fearless Collective and FRIDA are joining hearts into what we imagine becoming a pivotal union of the feminist movement with the public art movement. In the spirit of the collective, we are sharing this moment with all the young feminists around the world. To take part in this collaboration, we invite you to send us posters (made in any medium of your choice) around the theme of Fearless FRIDA: coloring outside the lines. How have you stepped outside the lines in your own life? Outside the lines of expectations, of fear, outside the lines of gender roles? Your poster will help us grow the collective of feminist artists behind this collaboration and weave feminist narratives from all over the world in a language understood by all - that is of art. You can send your posters to [email protected] with your name, location and a brief one-line note that you might want us to publish with it. The posters will be published on the websites of The Fearless Collective and FRIDA as well as our social media outlets and will travel the world with us on a global art tour.

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“Being a liberated woman is embracing all that you are, especially, your moontime. When a woman is menstruating, she is a goddess in every sense of the word. She is in a heightened state of awareness, floating in the heavens and her essence, golden. Here's to women all over the world embracing their period as a powerful form of empowerment!”

Art and text by Seema who shuttles between New York City and Spain. 

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“ “Not for your consumption. Not for pleasing you. Not for your joy. My smile is for me. Do not request it. My nudity is not your sex. My nudity is mine to show, share, express.  Your racism is yours to reflect on and cancel. Hypersexualized racism is still racism. I am not your island paradise. I am not your jungle temptress. I need no validation of my beauty from you.” Art by Michelle Isava, words of Akeila Oliver of Sistah2Sistah from Trinidad and Tobago.

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"Being Fearless is a continuous journey coming into your own. The only way to do that is to have an honest relationship with yourself, before you can pursue to have a relationship with the world around you.

The piece titled 'Whispers Turning into louder Screams", is an oil painting I did a few years ago, that I thought fit beautifully with the theme of Coloring Outside the Lines"

Art & text by Ekom Mamik from New York & Foothills of Darjeeling (India)

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“In my opinion, scars and bruises on the bodies of the survivors should not be a sight of pity. These marks should be considered beautiful. Victims should not feel insecure about their appearance but should sense a feeling of pride because they were strong enough to survive the inhumane incident. I’ve doodled the various parts which are disfigured because these floral patterns beautify their face and soul ... an everlasting impression of their courage and strength.” Art and text by Kaanchi Chopra, New Delhi, India. 

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“Being comfortable in one’s own skin takes courage, people might not understand you, they may judge you , but don’t let society make rule you. Be the change that you want to be, let no one tell you otherwise. Be fearless! Take pride in who you are.” Art and text by Jessica George.

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“Su nombre es AGUA = VIDA, y se trata del cuidado de las energías femeninas que nos permiten vivir.” We have another stunning submission from Juleika, Argentina.

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“The idea of being comfortable with not just one's body but also one's mind has always been something I've found very difficult. But for the first time, I've spent nearly a whole month on my own, and I've come to understand that this is who I am, and probably will always be. At the end of the day, I need to understand what I want and like in order to be the kind of person I would enjoy being around.” Art and text by Nandita Ratan from Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh, India.

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This poster is entitled L’arme Décisive (The decisive weapon) and is made as a collage on paper. Shared with us by Steve Tierney from Oaxaca, Mexico who says "Turn your Fear into your Power" 

More power to all the fearless feminists out there who are dismantling power structures with their fire and activism! <3 

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“My work has been a constant negotiation of my identity. A woman, born and raised in the third world. The demands of matriarchal tradition and patriarchal norms layered with global exposure on an accelerated path to a recontextualized intrinsic socio political concept. A subconscious battle of the dichotomy of life: new vs old, confidence vs passivity, communication vs language. Have I become the superb victim? Living only while living off centuries of cultural argument?

Paradox is a phenomenon that affects the universal village. As the world moves towards greater globalization, nationalities and cultures will merge together. Technological transformations will lead to a life style independent of the collision of the eastern and western world. I see myself emerging as a woman without pathos or helplessness. Being one. Raising another. A lifestyle independent of dependency. The sense of displacement replaced by inclusive, natural, materialistic desires.

Experimenting with unconventional surfaces, remaining in the classical realm of classical premises of art education, my perspective as an artist has strongly been influenced as an instructor of drawing and painting. The result has been cathartic self exploration delving into my sub conscious arguments and fears showing me the path to blocked aims. New beginnings?”  Art and text by Noshina Arif from Karachi, Pakistan.

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"Embracing sexuality that one possesses despite the multitude of restraints, oppression and stigma that comes attached to the character of a woman by the double standard society that mocks it, vilifies it, and yet in the secret corners lurches on it.  Embrace it. Your sexuality might be a threat to any man on bus. Embrace it. Your sexuality would go through number of blames that they throw at your face, if it's devoured unethically. Embrace it. Your sexuality, is something that by very virtue of covering, of clothing, of behaving well and chaste, they will make you forget you have it. They will ask you to 'act civil' but all you do is, forget you're a sexual being. Embrace it. It's yours." [Here is a woman who embraces her sexuality as she realises its nothing but being close to nature.] Art and text by Isha Yadav, New Delhi, India. 

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“Let everything happen to you Beauty and terror Just keep going No feeling is final” ― Rainer Maria Rilke. Art by Sharayu Gangurde from Mumbai, India. 

[Do send us your story in poster to celebrate ‪#‎fearlesslyFRIDA‬ - a feminist collaboration for storytelling and public art by The Fearless Collective and FRIDA | The Young Feminist Fund.] 

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 “The Misfits - for the once who see things differently. This painting is based on the idea of molding your thoughts, changing and improving them to create something new out of what you got. This work intends to shake you up and let you see what lies within you through what lies in front of you. As an artist, this is a tribute to those eccentric, innovative and crazy ideas. Here’s to all the crazy fearless ones - move Outside the Lines.” Art and text by Rahul Das from Mumbai, India.

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My femininity, my humanity, the lines, the curves, the angles, the very blood that flows through my veins, the same that flows out of my honey pot, same that flows in the vein of my child unborn, the life blood of my existence…                                                                                   I am fearless…

                                                              …..I am woman

Art and text by Tyna Adebowale, a volunteer at WHER, Nigeria. Women’s Health and Equal Rights (WHER) Initiative aims to provide a platform for the promotion of the well-being and protection of the rights of women and girls through advocacy, education and empowerment.

Loving the support and fierceness in all the art we are receiving from individuals and groups alike. Keep coloring outside the lines!

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"I Love Myself- The Body, Mind and Spirit! " Our identity is for others to identify us and not for the self! A seed in the process of growing up into a plant got to lose itself (it's identity, but not its nature it's self expression or its originality) and got to remain grounded. We got to be willing to lose our identity and be grounded for us to be nurtured in our growth. We do not grow till we hop around, instead of getting grounded and protect ouridentity instead of losing the exterior with which we have wrapped around our vulnerability. Seed no more remains a seed when it is grown. Till it remains a seed it cannot grow. Stepping outsides the lines is a way to breakthrough all the self created or imposed identities and become ONE with NATURE.” Art and text by Lyla FreeChild from Jaipur, Rajasthan, India.

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We are super excited to announce- The FearlesslyFrida global art tour in collaboration with FRIDA | The Young Feminist Fund​!

We're going to be in six countries this year, collaborating with amazing feminist groups and creating art! We start our journey in Indonesia this month. Calling all fearless artists, activists, lovers, unicorns and scaffolding builders - join us in Bogor to explore and paint our stories Outside the Lines.

Contact [email protected] if you'd like to join in, or drop us a message.

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“This painting is about the phase of a woman’s life when she is transforming into a confident person. And fighting, struggling to become her own person without a label being put on her. Fearlessness does not just arrive at doorstep it gradually develops and blooms inside a woman when she is left alone. ... It is a kind of confused yet very calm state of understanding different worlds around and making sense of them.  In this symbolic universe make peace with who you are while developing an inner strength to understand your surroundings.”  Art and text by Juhee Matta from New Delhi, India. 

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“My idea behind this was to portray transgenders as third gender in the society. Swans represent the beauty within each and every human. Somewhere, we do not try to see transgender as humans. They are beautiful souls. The face a bindi and a moustache is representative of transgender here, and it is shown to be drowning as a metaphor of how we treat transgenders in our country.”  Art and text by Navin Kumar Kushwah from Bangalore, India.