MUNTHE ART MONDAY: 
LAXMI HUSSAIN

Please introduce yourself and tell us about what you do.

I’m Laxmi Hussain born in London and mother to three children. I paint and draw the female form, expressing how it changes throughout life, exploring motherhood and the female nude, I hope, in a more realistic lens.

Could you explain more about how being a woman has affected your career?
 
I think that there is a lot of empowerment in sharing the body through my work, allowing women to feel seen, to understand that their bodies are meant to change and fluctuate and do incredible things like recover, grow and nurture. However we are often pushed through societal norms not to think this way and despite my work even I am subject to these feelings. Mothering is also often taken less seriously for the huge undertaking that it is, and oftentimes women who are artists can be taken less seriously for having to split their time amongst their art and mothering. As a society I feel we require a lot of progress in accepting that motherhood is an essential part of life and giving mothers space, support and generally accepting that this is a normal journey in life can go such a long way in allowing more mothers to be artists.

Can you name some other female (artist) that inspires you and explain why they do so?

Simone Brewster - currently exhibiting a solo show in the Design Museum London. Simone is an incredible multidisciplinary artist whose work spans furniture, painting, jewellery and more. Monika Morito - A Filipina artist based in Germany whose work is bold and colourful, taking inspiration from the Philippines and as someone who has Filipina heritage her work always brings me joy. Jacqueline de la Fuente - another fellow Filipina artist, who creates these incredible vessels from paper clay that she produces herself from waste paper. Jacqueline has been an instagram friend of mine for a long time and her work is always so inspiring and again taking inspiration from home. I love the painted vessels so much, with their elaborate sculptural forms, I wish I could have them all!

What has been the most challenging aspect of being a woman in the arts?

I think motherhood, just the constant juggling of several worlds, but they are very reflective of one another - I am constantly thinking about the other whilst working in the opposite and I love that even though juggling both is incredibly challenging, they are my biggest loves.

What would you like people to notice in your artwork?

I want people to feel seen, to see their bodies just the way they are meant to be, without flaw, but also not perfect. They just are. Our bodies do so much, mine personally has given me three children, carried me through life, losing both parents, caring, sharing, living and being an artist. I now weight lift and am still constantly marvelled by the things my body can do - i’m truly grateful for mine.