1. To give women a positive image of their bodies especially menstruation - Visit my photo gallery. See artist's statement page for a comment about each photo, see below for an overall rationale of my photography.
2. To provide women knowledge about their bodies and sexuality. This empowers women to make the best choices for their lives. They are stronger and more able to withstand social pressure or coercion. I uphold women’s right to be in charge of what happens to their body - Visit my links.
3. I welcome you to express your ideas about what it means to be a woman. We all have interesting stories - Visit my blog and post a notice.
About Margaret Kalms, a Canberra photographer
I trained in photography at Canberra Institute of Technology (CIT).
Photographic styles I enjoy include:
Portraiture - Newborn babies - Nature and wildlife - Landscape - Works of art - Events and weddings
My woman art has been exhibited:
• “Polychromatica” March 2006,
• “Living in Canberra” October 2006,
• “Plan Art and Craft Show” November 2006,
• “Calendar Girls” 2007,
• “Body Language” at Escape ArtFest, 2007,
• “Heavenly Bodies” at Escape ArtFest, 2008,
and shown on ABC TV Stateline in Canberra on 18 March 2006.
and published in “Calendar Girls” 2007 calendar, a publication by the Women's Centre for Health Matters.
ABC
filming in M16 gallery, Fyshwick, Canberra, Australia
Overall rationale of my photography
Because
I am a Christian, I am motivated by the conviction that we
are “Fearfully and wonderfully made” (Psalm 139:14) created
by God in a beautiful and intricate way. When God made each
part of creation he said “It was good” (Genesis chapters 1
& 2).
My ideas are important social statements on the status and
identity of women and empower women to be in charge of how
they present their bodies; which parts they show, which
parts they hide and what meaning to give it.
My work aims to answer the question posed on the
website The Red Spot,
Taboo history page,
"If menstruation has always been feared or
misunderstood, how do we learn to feel good about our
bodies when we bleed?". I aim to communicate what it
means to be a woman, to give women new, beautiful,
positive ways to look at their bodies’ functions.
Menstruation is a significant part of being a woman and is
still a tabo topic. Each woman is expected to hide all
physical evidence. She is reluctant to talk about how she
feels even if she is in pain or has medical issues.
Prejudice and embarrassment has stopped some women from
seeking needed health treatment causing unnecessary
suffering. My art can help overcome this prejudice.
My work uses pictorial symbolism to express some of the
feelings and ideas women feel about menstruation and their
bodies. This ordinary experience can be beautiful,
expressive and even joyous. The symbols we use and the
meaning we give things is important. See
Victor Frankl, "Man's
Search for Meaning" ISBN 0-671-24422-1.
Menstruation is a celebration of creative life, an
indicator of fertility. Without menstruation, women would
not be fertile and there would be no new life.
Blood marks our major life events. We are born in blood, we
begin adulthood in blood, we begin our sex lives in blood,
we begin parenting in blood.
I celebrate this creative blood.