The Biology of Desire
6 x 8 inch ink illustration on paper
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What does sapphic love mean to you? "The Biology of Desire" is an intimate expression of sapphic, wlw artwork.
As a woman, I'm told that a woman's pleasure and safety are secondary to a cis-man's unchecked gaze and uncontrollable urges. As a bisexual artist, I know the importance of seeing art about identity. As an artist I'm aware of the impact that art has on cultural narratives, and the importance of making identity art representative of the full human experience.
"The Biology of Desire" evolved as a response to all of the above. Sapphic love exists with such beautiful autonomy from other experiences. In the safety of sapphic intimacy, a woman's pleasure is central and celebrated, as it should be.
Though this piece, and this description, are specific to women loving women (cis-women), the same sapphic intimacy and pleasure can be claimed by multitudes: cis-women, trans-women, trans-men, trans-femmes, and non-binary people.
Artwork displaying pleasure positivity, and specifically pleasure for women, and pleasure shared among women as healthy and beautiful, is urgently needed. The existence of women loving women is a beautiful, valid, and perfectly normal human experience to be celebrated.
The elements discovered in the creation of this wlw drawing each represent some of the beautiful elements common to the wlw, or sapphic experience: in this case two bodies with vulvas are shown, softness is represented by the bunny and delicate lines, scissors for shared and reciprocal female pleasure, the valued experience of a knowledgable woman's touch portrayed through a specific hand gesture, and the expansive nature of sapphic love as shown in the Monstera Deliciosa drawing.
This piece of wlw art celebrates that which society would shun to the shadows - the importance of women's pleasure, and the beautiful validity and existence of sapphic love as wholly independent from the heteronormative narrative.
I hope works like this help others feel seen, validated, and loved for their most intimate, and completely valid desires.
Visual Description of "Biology of Desire"
The image is that of a line art drawing of sapphic artwork titled "The Biology of Desire." Elements shown include the head and ears of a bunny, two body's with vulvas, a pair of scissors, a hand, and a Monstera Deliciosa plant.
The first body, placed along the left side of the piece, depicts a front view of a vulva, and the lines leave the impression of two legs crossed, the right crossed over the left. The bunny head and ears rest above the first body.
The viewer sees a pair of scissors central to the piece, between the two bodies. The second body shows a profile from the right side, revealing breasts, a vulva as indicated by shading, and upper thighs.
A hand is drawn downward, extending the lines from the left thigh of the second body. The index and middle finger are extended from the hand in a relaxed two finger pointing gesture. Finally the image depicts the flower and leaves of a Monstera Deliciosa placed in the lower left corner of the piece.