This limited edition of 500 signed reproductions was printed from an original pencil drawing that was inspired by these words of Jane O’Reilly:
Every woman who believes that becoming an executive is enough, every daughter who thinks she was accepted to medical or law school simply because she was smart (and forgets the women who fought a hundred years for her admission), every woman who accepts her own opportunity within the system and does not open a way for other women (and thus, inevitably, change the system) stands with the tide. The point of feminism is not that the world should be the same, but that it should be different.
We must remember the past, define the future, and challenge the present – wherever and however we can. It will take us the rest of our lives even to begin.
O’Reilly’s words led me to research many women in the last century who have made a difference by bettering and enhancing women’s lives today. Because there were so many, I tried to select representatives from various aspects of life, i.e., politics, (particularly the women’s suffragette movement), the arts, sports, labor, anthropology, etc. I would like to do more of these in the future focusing on other equally powerful women in the cause of equality and justice.
This artwork is available as a reproduction.
Ellen Elmes
PO Box SVCC
Richlands, VA 24641-1101
email: ellen.elmes@sw.edu
phone: 276.964.7205
fax: 276.964.7720