Faculty of Art

Drawing and Painting

Emily Grybas

i am not prey

An exploration of what feminine power means. A soft, candy colour palette mixed with harsh blacks of charcoal pull together to speak to the in-betweeness of what feminine power is and can be. There is power in being soft. There is power in vulnerability.

“I am depicting the rabbit as hybrid with the female body - she is massive, she is armed with dangerous claws, and she has an intensity created by using dark, black charcoal to emphasize her body. The Rabbit in my images is a depiction of feminine power. While she is a massive, looming figure, she does not entirely lose her vulnerability. She is no longer physically at risk, but she maintains a level of comfort and understanding that I feel as a female viewer to my work. She is meant to hold comforting power in vulnerability to some, and create the feeling of power imbalance in others. She exists in the metaxy, the inbetween, she is not meant to be placed - if she can be pinned down, I feel as though she loses something about her. Part of what makes her so important is her ability to exist between worlds - painting versus reality versus fantasy.”