Fight Like A Girl

Works by Erin Currier | Acrylic and mixed media on panel

For the past decade and a half, the underlying theme of all of my work is that which I continue to find to be true wherever I have traveled, be it Latin America, Africa, the Middle East, Asia, or Europe: that our commonalities as human beings far outweigh our differences. The overwhelming majority of people I have met all over the world are kind, decent human beings whose needs and desires are simple and universal: the necessity of adequate shelter, good food, clean water, the ability to raise and provide for a family, and the opportunity to make use of one’s particular set of skills in order to contribute to their larger communities. Divisions are often either superficial or artificially created based on racial, economic, and national ideologies. Where we are similar is of a more profound metaphysical caliber: the bond between sisters, the love between mother and child, the kinships shared through creative endeavors; these run like threads in the great fabric of generations. My use of trash and discarded packaging, written in every language, gathered from every continent, further expresses our affinities in what we create, value, share, consume, and cast away.

The selected works which comprise Fight Like A Girl share in common the fact that each one is either a direct or symbolic representation of women engaged in an emancipatory struggle. I see beauty inherent in the strength and courage that are necessary attributes of those engaged in struggle, resistance, and defiance, against the catastrophic onslaught of globalization, capitalism, fascism, and ecological devastation. I see our reality as in a state of becoming. The subjects of these paintings are a few among many women I have portrayed working with the skills at hand —be it through penning words, educating, organizing, or simply pursuing a passion --in a limiting present reality that is nonetheless a historical reality susceptible to transformation. Through reflection and action, human beings can truly transform reality-- and today women are at the vanguard.

Fight Like a Girl expresses and celebrates this vital feminine spirit that persists in the world today. It consists of a selection of works that represent a range of courage and grace in action-- from young Afghan skategirls; to the world’s first openly gay UFC fighter: Brazilian bantamweight champion Amanda Nunez; to unflinching and tireless journalist Amy Goodman; to cartoneras, tangueras, y trabajadoras de Argentina; to New Mexico’s own Mariel Nanasi, who spearheads a coalition effort by Pueblos, students, farmers, and homeowners, to harness some of our state’s 330 days of sunshine into a resource shared by all.

I truly believe that, for every tactic employed by those seeking to oppress and subjugate others, for every shackle and chain utilized, there are a thousand ways to unlock, untangle, and break through, those chains. This is why a counter-power rooted in imagination is crucial-- and one originating in feminine strength. Fight Like a Girl is just that.