An artwork against rape and defilement and
Visual artist Evelyn Chisambiro has joined fellow women and several other players in raising concerns about the escalating rape and defilement cases in the country by creating an artwork.
The youthful artist, who has exhibited three times including twice during Art in the Park in Lilongwe, said yesterday that the artwork stems from her discussion with a friend on the issue.
“I really wanted to do something on the issue as one way of expressing my anger and frustration,” Chisambiro said.
She said her friend sent her a few photographs to work on “but with each one I just could not really figure out how best to tell their story”.
“So, for a few weeks me and my friend Aisha went back and forth on the subject. Then one day, she sent me the photograph of this little girl and straightway I knew I wanted to tell her story,” the visual artist said.
Chisambiro said artists had a role to play in different disciplines to tackle ills affecting the society especially girls and women.
“Most of us would not remember what we did at two years because at that point one is still unaware of themselves, still so fragile and easily excitable. For someone to have thoughts of defiling a child at that innocent time of their life and then killing them is the worst form of evil,” she said.
In the artwork, Chisambiro tells the story of a girl child who will never get the joys of childhood, figure out life as a teen and finally make up her own journey as an adult.
“At the top are three images, from left to right she is on a swing, in the middle with her friend going to school and in the last one, blooming in love. In the centre at the bottom, she is going up the stairs in heels, now a woman. All these she will never experience, she will never get to pick her favourite colour or mold up her character. She will never get to pick friends or a career,” she said.
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