Femme de Chambre

acrylic, oil pastel, and collage in composition book

I finished another spread in my composition book, this one in the Vessels theme. It started with blue paint that was left over from one of the Soul Mapping exercises. I couldn’t let it go to waste, so I did some finger painting in my composition book. The checkerboard stamp–made from an eraser–came from the same place. The pattern is supposed to represent institutional floor tiles–the sort found in many US schools–but I’m not sure it translates well, given the color scheme. I like it, though, and I think the concept of pattern fits well with the general theme.

The theme and title come from the fragment of dictionary page. I was struck by the juxtaposition of femur with female, and the inclusion of “femme de chambre” (chamber maid). There was certainly a lot to work with there: vessels, chambers, women’s work; the idea that women are empty receptacles, awaiting the indoctrination and training that will allow them to conform to the traditional female role (mother, wife, living loving maid, if you will).

And, just because I can, I thought I’d include a current photo of my work space. It’s actually pretty clean, here. Usually, I leave piles of stuff sitting out, which Pandora sleeps all over and shoves off the edge of the table.

Also, because I can, I scanned and uploaded a real photo postcard I found at a yard sale last summer. It’s not in very good shape (creases, and some pencil marks on the front, and the corners are all bent), but it was really cheap, so I bought it. The back is inscribed in pencil with several names. It also bears the inscription “Norfolk Neb.”

Recto

Verso