Not just skin deep
In her latest project, artist ruby subramaniam turns the intimate stories of 30 women into brave body painting.
OVER 30 days, 30 women from various walks of life made their way to the quiet town of Kuang, Selangor. Each of them was heading to the Rimbun Dahan arts centre, to meet the artist Ruby Subramaniam.
Within the peaceful greenery of Rimbun Dahan, Ruby and the women would talk, and then meditate together. And then Ruby would paint on them. Their conversations would be turned into stories, the women’s bodies serving as a canvas.
It was all part of Antidote: Uncovering Skin And Soul, a social impact project exploring women’s relationships with their bodies. The project addresses female body politics, and global conversations about womanhood, including topics such as beauty, scars, sexuality, insecurities, motherhood, ageing, and divorce in a localised context, layered with Asian culture, religion and beliefs.
“Using the human body as a canvas is not a new concept, however for this project it was the right medium, a powerful statement from women who reclaimed their bodies from society, owning them boldly,” says Ruby in an interview in Petaling Jaya.
“The photographs wouldn’t have held the same tranquility and ferocity if I had painted it on a canvas, or any other material. It was the women who brought the images alive with their bold gazes and strong poses.”
This project is supported by the INXO Arts Fund and the Krishen Jit Astro Fund, as well as Mathubalan Gunasogaran of Bawah Pokok Films, who collaborated with Ruby on the photography and film elements.
Inspiration for Antidote came from another work This Body Is
Mine, which Ruby worked on in 2017. A mixture of body painting, photography and performance art, the project was aimed at combating street harassment, and was inspired by a group who threatened to spray paint on the bodies of women they deemed to be dressed inappropriately during Thaipusam.
For the current project, Ruby sent out an open call in February 2018, asking interested participants intimate questions about experiences that shaped their values. She wound up receiving 73% more applications than she expected.
Ruby carried out the project during her 30-day residency with Rimbun Dahan. Every morning, she would rise at 8am, beginning her day with a grounding meditation. She deliberately disengaged herself from social media. For the whole process, she would only interact with the participants of the project.
“I knew I was taking on something much bigger than me. I was listening to stories that had not happened to me, so there were chances I may not be able to empathise or relate to them. So I turned to spirituality, my roots in religion,” says Ruby.
“I asked for an energy that was greater than me, so I could go through these days. I didn’t want to spill over the stories that I heard, from one women to another, and end up putting it all on myself.”
The participants of her project were a diverse group, with older women, women from marginalised communities, trans-women, plussized women and differently-abled women all represented. Many had harrowing stories to tell: these included experiences of abortion, eating disorders, domestic abuse, and more. One participant even related finding videos of herself in porn websites.
Ruby would paint and Mathubalan would shoot for 30 days without a break, passing the point of exhaustion many, many times. It was truly an experience: especially for Ruby herself. The artist related that one particularly difficult time came mid-way during the project, when a close friend questioned why she was doing this project.
“That really hurt me, because I thought, as a friend, this person would be able to understand where I was coming from.
“And I kept saying, kept asking myself, don’t you understand why I want to do this?
“I said it so many times, I don’t know when the tears started flowing from my eyes.
“I had to pause at that moment,” recalls Ruby.
Up to that point, Ruby hadn’t realised her true motives for this project. The artist had previously felt it was the right thing to do, a logical path to follow based on the themes of her previous art project
“I think it was at that point I realised I was doing this for my mother.
“I was a very young girl when I saw her, fighting against her family who were saying things about her, fighting against what society expected of her. I was not eloquent enough to be able to stand up for her at that time.”
“I think at that age, I did my best. But I wish I was able to do more. So I think in many ways, this project is a sort of redemption for me, to connect with other women who need support.
“It was her death anniversary recently. So this is sort of a dedication to her. I hope all of the healing we’ve collectively done will also heal some of the scars she had.” Antidote: Uncovering Skin And Soul’s final outcome will be a documentary, which is currently in the post-production stage, and is expected to be released next year.
For now, follow the project, and view the photos at www. skinandsoul.art.