Cow Pie 

Lucia Heffernan created this artwork, called "Cow Pie," using oil on canvas. This painting is a humorous take on traditional domesticity, flipping the roles of humans and animals. The cow, an animal often associated with dairy farming and food production, is now the domestic figure in the kitchen, complete with hair curlers and a pie. The setting – a mid-century styled kitchen – evokes a very specific time in American cultural history, one in which traditional gender roles were strongly reinforced. The image encourages us to reflect on how we perceive and treat animals, but also how we negotiate gender roles. Heffernan offers a visual commentary on the social and cultural expectations placed on women, particularly within the domestic sphere. To understand this work more deeply, we might research the history of both American agriculture and gender roles. We would consider the ways those histories have shaped our current views on animals, food, and domestic labor. It also tells us much about the politics of imagery.