Spanish artist Cinta Tort Cartrό has made quite a splash in the art scene. She has taken stretch marks, period stains, and the idea of “gross/unsavory” things about the female body and made them bright, colorful, and glittery. While some people absolutely love this fresh new outlook, some people meet it with disgust or make jokes in poor taste. Really, it seems to come down to what you are getting from this art and what you think it means. For many people, this bright trend symbolizes acceptance and body positivity.
(All pictures of the artist's work can be found here, with many more to love!
It’s no secret that the body positivity movement has been taking the internet by storm. Some people have found their voices to speak up against negative and harmful stigmas enforced by media and have been baring it all. Ladies and gents of all sizes, colors, orientations, and lifestyles have been being a voice for those who are too downtrodden to use their own set of pipes to set the record straight. On Instagram the latest thing is to embrace your “hip dip”. Stretch marks have been a hot topic in many social circles on Facebook and the like with people both accepting their “tiger stripes” and other people hating them. The thing about stretch marks is that everyone has them, whether they are noticeable or not, and they can come from a variety of situations from puberty to motherhood to weight related instances. They’re a natural reaction to your body changing shape, skin stretches. But no matter how natural they are, they’re a source of embarrassment for some. Why do we feel the need to be ashamed of our bodies changing?
Speaking of natural things and changes, another large theme in Cartrό’s work is menstruation stains. Let’s be honest for a quick second: we all hate washing blood out of our favorite pair of undies but it’s part of life. Some people of the world, especially keyboard warriors, love to hate on periods. (Google “mansplaining periods”, it’s rough). The truth is periods are a natural and much needed thing. We should, as a society, be able to accept the uterus’s purpose and processes. Sadly, many people feel the need to shame ladies for bleeding, claiming it’s “gross” or “unsightly”. Why should a natural process of shedding some cells be considered disgusting? Because it stains?
Well our lovely artist decided to combat the harmful “body shamers” by taking these natural (but less appealing) things and combining them with two aesthetics that everyone loves: rainbow and glitter. And you know what? It’s freaking glorious. Coming from somebody who has her fair share of stretchmarks I can say that I love the rainbow approach because it makes them seem fun and festive. It makes light of an insecurity I have, and I feel like it might for others too. The same goes for the period stains. Her work shows ladies in their underwear with rainbow crotch stains and shimmery glitter running down their legs. Glitter makes everything shiny, even the dullest parts of life.
Honestly the work seems to be about embracing the things you’ve been told by the media is gross or unwanted by showing it in a different color or in different light, and I can get behind that. I know that as a grown woman I’ve learned not to be as self-conscious (though I still have my quirks!) and I hope that others see her art and feel the same. Rainbows come after a storm, so these rainbow stretchmarks are coming after the fury that is self-doubt and hate. Love yourself, love your body, you’re the only you that you have.
