In my search of contemporary illustrations that challenge the established views of femininity, I came across the work of Carol Rossetti. Rossetti offers an empathic view on women's body and identity issues. She draws inspiration from a wide variety of stories and topics like LGBTQ identity, body image, ageism, racism, sexism and ableism (Identities Mic 2014). The Women Project series struck a global attention with thousands of followers. A group of Israeli feminists translated the illustrations in Hebrew.
Carol Rossetti, The Women project, 2014. www.carolrossetti.com.br
Carol Rossetti, The Women project, 2014. www.carolrossetti.com.br
Rossetti cleverly combines typography with simple pencil drawings to deliver these powerful messages. It is a goal of mine to incorporate more handwriting into my own illustrations, to enhance their content. I was impressed by the range of work Rosetti created, from light, humorous topics to dark themes like rape. Invariably she employs identical visual style in these works. I have always been interested in how the style of an image affects the meaning that is conveyed. To find illustrations that can elicit laugh or sorrow while using the same visual style is a revelation to me.