In Ancient Greek mythology Aphrodite was the goddess of love and beauty. According to her myth when she wept in sorrow and grief her tears were transformed into flowers and as they fell to the ground they blossomed into anemones.
The Tears of Aphrodite is an art installation by Émilie Gautier and Rebecca Devaney that began on International Women’s Rights Day 2019. Inspired by the evocative imagery in the myth of Aphrodite, anemones were chosen as a symbol to represent women.
This project was designed to highlight the exquisite craftsmanship of embroidery while visually representing the levels of sexual violence committed against women in France.
Each panels represents a single day and each flower represents a woman who has been raped. It is estimated that at least 200 women are raped every day in France. The figures are provided by Stop Violences-Femmes, The Feminist Collective Against Rape, The National Observatory of Violence Against Women and a study by Odoxa, published in Le Figaro in October 2017.
If the installation were to continue and a full calendar year was created with 365 tableaus it would consist of 73,000 flowers.
Each floral motif has been meticulously prepared using traditional 19th century techniques in the renowned Parisienne atelier Cécile Henri. The Tears of Aphrodite illustrates this heritage and savoir-faire, the meticulous skills and patience of the embroiderers, the fine craftsmanship and techniques used in the ateliers and the rich qualities and illustrious effects of using natural, sustainable fabrics.
Exhibition held at the Town Hall of the 20th arrondissement of Paris. Installation kindly sponsored by the provision of a space during the celebrations of the International Women’s Rights Day 2019.
Speaking at the conference – Taking Public Action to End Violence At Home – OECD High-Level Conference on Ending Violence Against Women 5-6 Fevrier 2020.
CONTRIBUTORS :
Embroiderers : Anaïde Fleig, Chiyoko Caussade, Isabelle Bruneau, Julia Merran, Keiko Kamiya, Émilie Gautier
Photography : Sidonie Ronfard et Émilie Gautier
Fabric : TissuMarket, Paris (kindly sponsored installation through exceptional discount on fabrics)
Atelier : Cécile Henri Atelier, Paris (kindly sponsored installation through provision of specialised artificial flower form tools)