This is a very powerful drawing! Perhaps the contrast of the blue and black shadings portray the two sides of this woman; the confident and the shattered, with the latter taking hold of her body image. The black cloud surrounding her mind feels almost like blood spilling. This highlights the damage of stressors, it seems more detrimental than any physical harm…
I recall the original version – it was on like tissue paper – which held the crayon really well. I remember thinking “this is serious artwork” – powerful and emotive.
This piece is incredibly evocative and outlines the dual nature of humanity.
The title itself is powerful in suggesting that there is more to her than meets the eye. It may allude to an internal distress or worry that is all-encompassing and consumes her whole entity. Her duality is explored further by the dichotomy between the light and the dark within the piece which adds to the meaning of the title, for it may represent the positive and negative aspects of her personality, both of which make her up.
However, it could also be indicating the power yet vulnerability of a woman. ‘2 in 1’ could be referencing the ability of a woman to create life, for the child is dependent on the mother’s life for its own. In this way, they are intertwined and parts of a whole. Her grief and isolation, which pierce through the piece clearly, may be depicting the loss of her 2nd part: her child.
This idea may be supported further by the darkness in the background of the piece, which could be representative of bloodshed and loss. Alternatively, there may be darker undertones to its meaning, and the blood could well be her own. In this sense, the piece may be exploring the idea of self-injury, and how, at times, we can become our own worst enemies, such that we can turn on ourselves as two separate identities within the same body. Perhaps it also represents the darkness of her thoughts and the shadows that haunt her. She seems upset and ashamed, covering her eyes and holding her body, almost as if she cannot face up to what it is that strikes her with such grief.
Finally, the nakedness of the woman highlights how raw the subject matter of the piece is. There is an irony here, for often we bury our innermost thoughts underneath a layered façade, much like we would our bodies under clothing. This piece depicts how these clothes, this façade, has fallen away, and we can see her for what she truly is.
For me, this is a powerful visualisation of one complicated, conflicted feeling. The drawing shows a young woman hunched over, her legs tightly crossed, her hand gripping her mouth closed. There’s a strong sense of keeping something inside – although not fully seen, you get the sense that the eyes are scrunched up, almost tearful, but it’s difficult to understand fully the emotion of the individual depicted.
There is also a darkness within the drawing. A dark cloud sits above her back, and shadows emerge from within her bent-over form. The darkness has no specific form, no name, no explanation, but we know that the individual depicted in the painting is feeling the effects of it.
The background might evoke a padded cell, a controlled environment, or maybe flooring you might expect to find in an older hospital. It looks cold and uninviting, but gives us clues as to who is depicted. So who might this be? I think there are two, or three possibilities.
This might be a medic. The idea that medics are often faced with a very dark side of humanity is rarely spoken of deeply – the individual must keep everything they see and feel in these situations hidden away, be detached, remain professional. That doesn’t stop the darkness going away, but it protects the professional image, hence the title ‘2 in 1’, perhaps reminding us of the different layers to a medical perspective on the world.
The second possibility is that this is a patient who suffers from a mental health disorder, perhaps bipolar or schizophrenia, from this title ‘2 in 1’. The darkness in this case might represent the negative side to their mental health disorder. The other person within, the other way of being, that which must be hidden. This links back to the idea that the whole body’s strength must be used to repress these strong overwhelming emotions, but it causes the individual pain.
Now a potential third possibility – could it be both? A medic who suffers with mental health issues would fit well into the drawing. You might feel a strong empathy for the person depicted, we can see her struggle, we want to help, to find out what’s wrong and what we can do with it. Perhaps that’s what’s most challenging about this piece. As medical students, we continually want to find out what’s wrong, find a solution, treat the person.
This piece highlights something that might go unnoticed – many individuals suffer in life, and taking a few moments to appreciate this suffering, building on our empathy, and reflecting, is needed sometimes; we don’t always need to rush to conclusions. We should help the person fight the disease, and not just help the disease.
This is a very powerful drawing! Perhaps the contrast of the blue and black shadings portray the two sides of this woman; the confident and the shattered, with the latter taking hold of her body image. The black cloud surrounding her mind feels almost like blood spilling. This highlights the damage of stressors, it seems more detrimental than any physical harm…
I recall the original version – it was on like tissue paper – which held the crayon really well. I remember thinking “this is serious artwork” – powerful and emotive.
This piece is incredibly evocative and outlines the dual nature of humanity.
The title itself is powerful in suggesting that there is more to her than meets the eye. It may allude to an internal distress or worry that is all-encompassing and consumes her whole entity. Her duality is explored further by the dichotomy between the light and the dark within the piece which adds to the meaning of the title, for it may represent the positive and negative aspects of her personality, both of which make her up.
However, it could also be indicating the power yet vulnerability of a woman. ‘2 in 1’ could be referencing the ability of a woman to create life, for the child is dependent on the mother’s life for its own. In this way, they are intertwined and parts of a whole. Her grief and isolation, which pierce through the piece clearly, may be depicting the loss of her 2nd part: her child.
This idea may be supported further by the darkness in the background of the piece, which could be representative of bloodshed and loss. Alternatively, there may be darker undertones to its meaning, and the blood could well be her own. In this sense, the piece may be exploring the idea of self-injury, and how, at times, we can become our own worst enemies, such that we can turn on ourselves as two separate identities within the same body. Perhaps it also represents the darkness of her thoughts and the shadows that haunt her. She seems upset and ashamed, covering her eyes and holding her body, almost as if she cannot face up to what it is that strikes her with such grief.
Finally, the nakedness of the woman highlights how raw the subject matter of the piece is. There is an irony here, for often we bury our innermost thoughts underneath a layered façade, much like we would our bodies under clothing. This piece depicts how these clothes, this façade, has fallen away, and we can see her for what she truly is.
For me, this is a powerful visualisation of one complicated, conflicted feeling. The drawing shows a young woman hunched over, her legs tightly crossed, her hand gripping her mouth closed. There’s a strong sense of keeping something inside – although not fully seen, you get the sense that the eyes are scrunched up, almost tearful, but it’s difficult to understand fully the emotion of the individual depicted.
There is also a darkness within the drawing. A dark cloud sits above her back, and shadows emerge from within her bent-over form. The darkness has no specific form, no name, no explanation, but we know that the individual depicted in the painting is feeling the effects of it.
The background might evoke a padded cell, a controlled environment, or maybe flooring you might expect to find in an older hospital. It looks cold and uninviting, but gives us clues as to who is depicted. So who might this be? I think there are two, or three possibilities.
This might be a medic. The idea that medics are often faced with a very dark side of humanity is rarely spoken of deeply – the individual must keep everything they see and feel in these situations hidden away, be detached, remain professional. That doesn’t stop the darkness going away, but it protects the professional image, hence the title ‘2 in 1’, perhaps reminding us of the different layers to a medical perspective on the world.
The second possibility is that this is a patient who suffers from a mental health disorder, perhaps bipolar or schizophrenia, from this title ‘2 in 1’. The darkness in this case might represent the negative side to their mental health disorder. The other person within, the other way of being, that which must be hidden. This links back to the idea that the whole body’s strength must be used to repress these strong overwhelming emotions, but it causes the individual pain.
Now a potential third possibility – could it be both? A medic who suffers with mental health issues would fit well into the drawing. You might feel a strong empathy for the person depicted, we can see her struggle, we want to help, to find out what’s wrong and what we can do with it. Perhaps that’s what’s most challenging about this piece. As medical students, we continually want to find out what’s wrong, find a solution, treat the person.
This piece highlights something that might go unnoticed – many individuals suffer in life, and taking a few moments to appreciate this suffering, building on our empathy, and reflecting, is needed sometimes; we don’t always need to rush to conclusions. We should help the person fight the disease, and not just help the disease.