Šejla Mehanovic
BFA: Art with Studio Emphasis in Painting
Artist Name:
Šejla Mehanovic
Work Title:
"Dovoljno Lijepa" — (“Pretty enough”)
Medium:
Oil Paint on Canvas
Artist Statement:
This work is centered on the ways beauty standards become part of everyday life and how easily they are internalized. I wanted each piece to focus on a different kind of pressure that many women and girls experience when appearance starts to feel connected to worth. In one painting, I am standing on a scale to show how body weight can become something constantly monitored and judged. Another piece shows gloved hands pulling my mouth open, focusing on how even teeth can become a source of scrutiny. The ballet piece looks at the pressure in spaces like ballet and gymnastics, where extreme thinness is often expected, sometimes to the point that girls lose their periods or turn to habits like smoking cigarettes to stay small. In the final piece, three versions of me appear together, with two applying makeup/hair products to the middle figure, which shows how beauty expectations are reinforced both by other people and by ourselves.
Artist Bio:
My artwork consists primarily of oil painting rooted in the human psyche and my own lived experiences. Recently, I have expanded my practice to address political and social topics such as immigration and the restrictive standards placed on women and young girls. I feel a responsibility, as an artist, to respond to the world around me and to create work that functions as both personal reflection and social commentary. While much of my work is drawn from my own life, my goal is to create a shared space where viewers can recognize themselves within these experiences and engage with the issues being presented. My commitment to art goes beyond aesthetics. I aim to create work that challenges viewers, invites discomfort, and pushes against expectations of what a woman or first-generation artist is expected to create.
Artist Portfolio: