The Virtuous Woman 2017

Harmonia Rosales made "The Virtuous Woman" using oil paint to give us a potent symbol of human potential. The earthy tones and the way the figure emerges from the aged, textured background, make you think about the passage of time and the stories that get layered onto our bodies. I love how Rosales mimics the look of old parchment, as if history itself is the canvas. Look closely at the figure’s face, that blend of strength and serenity. Rosales is playing with Leonardo da Vinci’s Vitruvian Man, but she’s not just copying; she’s remixing. She’s asking us to rethink who gets to be at the center of the story. By placing a Black woman in this iconic pose, she creates a powerful statement about representation, and challenges the traditional canon of art history. It's like she's saying, "We've always been here, and we deserve to be seen." Just like Mickalene Thomas's glittering portraits challenge notions of beauty, Harmonia Rosales invites us to question whose stories we tell and whose bodies we celebrate.