Being an avid collector and a human psyche explorer I saved my menstrual blood and painted my portrait. I stood in front of a mirror and painted my reflection onto a canvas. A month later I used the same blood to paint the portrait on to my face. The concept of this cyclical piece is to literally face the shame that women bear when concealing their menstruation.
Self Portrait with Menstrual Blood, 2011, Blood on Canvas
Self Portrait with Menstrual Blood 2, 2011, Photograph
Self Portrait with Menstrual Blood 2 (Profile), 2011, Photograph
by
Layne Arlina
My 'Self Portrait with Mentstrual Blood (1 and 2)' went viral.
See link below for more about this artwork
http://layne-arlina.blogspot.com/2011/07/facing-my-shame.html
My 'Self Portrait with Mentstrual Blood (1 and 2)' went viral.
See link below for more about this artwork
http://layne-arlina.blogspot.com/2011/07/facing-my-shame.html
What the fuck, lady.
ReplyDeletecute
ReplyDeleteWhy would you do that?
ReplyDeletewas this just an excuse to put period blood on your face? bc... why did you have to PUT PERIOD BLOOD ON YOUR FACE??????
ReplyDelete"ooohh im so artsy and avant garde i put menstrual blood on my face"
ReplyDeleteFucking sicko. Artists are all insane, and need to be institutionalized.
ReplyDeleteVery expressive. Good technique! I envy your bloody style. Ta darling!
ReplyDeleteThis is just... Wrong.
ReplyDeleteI must say that I for one completely understood the underlying socio-political commentary your piece was designed to portray. Completely.
ReplyDeleteWhat a boring concept.
ReplyDeleteyou are a fucking disgusting person
ReplyDeleteSend *this* to the Senator that wants to investigate cases of miscarriage, as you've clearly placed future citizens on your face.
ReplyDeletewhaaat the fuck
ReplyDeleteI really like this. It's beautiful :)
ReplyDeleteDam bitch! You nasty!
ReplyDeleteWhat the dick?
ReplyDelete..oh.
ReplyDeleteOh god, I'm getting flashbacks to one of my past lives or something in which I was a MONKEY smearing FECAL MATTER everywhere!
This makes me want to punch myself in the balls over and over. 10/10
ReplyDeleteI'm kind of over the whole menstrual blood thing. It has been done a few times, and each time it has been equally disgusting. You are embarrassing yourself and making it harder for the rest of us. Would you rub your own feces on your face and make a portrait? Can everyone please stop playing with the waste your body makes? Thanks.
ReplyDeleteWhat the fuck.....I don't even....I'm done with the Internet.
ReplyDeleteNo. I dont even care what this represents.
ReplyDeleteN O
you think if you went to all the trouble to make a painting out of expired snatch blood. You would put some time and effort into painting a human face.
ReplyDeleteYou need to learn your anatomy. Lady. This is simply shock art...its philosophy. Start honing your skills.
Well your paintings suck and you have period blood on your face... go back to working at the grocery store.
ReplyDeleteSome Omazing art... Period
ReplyDeleteyour work is outstanding, and you deeply, on levels i didn't know would be triggered, inspire me to be courageous and honor my sacred woman self. thank you so much for being so brave, and sharing your self with all of us. you are a gift to women everywhere.
ReplyDeleteiv'e seen another woman do this and the paintings were beautiful, still disgusting, but beautiful. your painting sucks. and you are disgusting for putting that on your face.
ReplyDeleteI would be impressed up to a point, if you done it pouring it right from the source, maybe using your vagina or a penis as brush, but this is plain lame, and much nonsense, I couldn't find any signification on either of them, or maybe you identify yourself with that natural process, but than is 1.over-explained (ok you're woman, it's obvious even without blood on your face) 2.reducing you as a spiritual, artist... guess it was just a fucked up pre-PMS idea... Just one more advise: don't try it with shit or pee, I'm pretty sure, it was done already.
ReplyDeleteThank you for all your comment, honoured x
ReplyDeleteIf you really need to do something vile and disgusting to get some coverage, maybe you should look into a job.
ReplyDeleteThought you might find this article by Kira Cochrane interesting, and perhaps the comments too
ReplyDeletehttp://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/2009/oct/02/menstruation-feminist-activists
People's squeamishness is really quite amusing. I can imagine a few of the same people enjoy masturbating to images of women with semen on their faces, yet this scares them. How cute.
ReplyDeletePersonally I find it interesting and not remotely disgusting.
"Anonymous said...
ReplyDeleteWell your paintings suck and you have period blood on your face... go back to working at the grocery store."
nailed it.
I love this!!! Sometimes its takes doing something outside the norm to make a point. Tis interesting how many people have missed the point and are stuck in the limiting thought patterns that feed the shame and disgust around menstrual cycles. Thank you for this Layla, beneath the physical nature of blood cells and plasma, our menstrual cycles are indeed sacred gifts that hold healing wisdom and nourish life! x
ReplyDeleteHi layne, I honour you for doing this! I think the amount of responses where people have expressed shock or disgust is an indication of how disconnected we have become from our bodies and natural processes. Those responses illustrate your point - we have become ashamed of what is natural. I see my period as a perfect indication that I am healthy, that as a woman my body is doing exactly what is it supposed to be doing. It's tangible proof that as a woman, I have wonderful, life producing potential. It is the most beautiful expression of blood loss - not borne of wounds but of natural life forming and renewing processes. Something worth celebrating I say! I am slowly re-learning my own views on my sexuality and physicality - I want to celebrate all that is natural and not shy away or be ashamed of it. Good on ya woman! Kate
ReplyDeleteMany thanks Kate, what beautiful feedback! It's difficult to work against the grain all the time so you've given me that little push I needed! I hope you succeed in becoming truly comfortable with your true self,
ReplyDeleteAll the best
Layne x
As someone else put it, I hide my feces from the world. Does that mean if I smear shit all over my face I'm being uplifting and artistic? No, it means you are being sick and demented.
ReplyDeleteWhile we're at it, let's go for earwax, bile, toejam, childrens tears. Oh wait, those aren't associated with a specific gender that you can use as your personal army through a mutual victim mentality.
ReplyDeleteYou should go back and take more inspiration from GG Allin.
To the recent Anonymous comment, I have made works out of other organic materials, feel free to take a gander through my blog
ReplyDeleteAll the best
Layne
The reactions to this have really made me appreciate what modern art is about, it never clicked for me before ... it is about stirring emotion, reaction ... bad art just gets passed by, but good art gets comment, sometimes violent insulting angry comment, sometimes deeply felt empathetic inspiring comment. It reflects societies view of something, it brings it to the forefront, and those who can only act negatively to expression they don't understand make themselves known. There are some people you will never please by making them uncomfortable, only those who are truly uncomfortable feel the need to rebel against something. All evolution is acheived through discomfort. You hear the echos of future fossils everywhere. x
ReplyDeleteUse your blood from femoral artery , it will look better !!
ReplyDeleteand by doing this you give a great service to human kind .
wow. methinks you'd be a ...memorable... lay.
ReplyDeletewhy dont you paint a periodic table wih it?
ReplyDeleteand grab somebody to decorate it with cum.
It reminds me of this: http://www.heaven666.org/southern-style-bukkake-26634.php
how did you save the blood? doesn't it clot?
ReplyDeleteI wore a mooncup to collect the blood and then stored it in a sealed container. The blood did clot slightly but that added to the texture and thickness when painting it on my face. If I had painted with it fresh it would have been runny and less effective, I feel.
ReplyDeleteThank you
Layne Arlina
Hello Layne,
ReplyDeleteI am a performer, writer and activist based in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. In my performances I also paint with menstrual blood, exploring visually cultural beliefs about sexuality and femininity. Through this research a mythical female figure has shown herself. She is the link between the ancestral and the contemporary feminine rituals.
Who is she?
She is called
RED WOMAN - MULHER VERMELHA.
She paints the world with her blood.
In my opinion this is just a desperate call of attention from possibly sheer boredom. I'm sure you can do more creative things than use filtered out your blood to paint childish faces. Try paint.
ReplyDelete