BUG ART NYC (Messages From the Voiceless), debuted at Spring Break NYC Art show in 2022
Bug Art NYC shines light on Domestic Violence and Coercive Control while integrating today’s global issues from social change, climate change, and public health . With the leaf artworks, conceptual artist, activist, advocate and BugArtNYC founder, Gwendolyn C Skaggs, takes her art making and personal experience to a universal level while heeding the Scientists' warning to humanity on insect extinctions and political catastrophes. SILENCE IS VIOLENCE, produced by hornworms, combines the artist’s understanding of balancing opposing forces with her knowing to look deeper into causes that disrupt and destroy the path to a just life for all sentient beings, holding oppressive systems and perpetrators accountable. The leaf embodies and reflects the cries from the voiceless, the unheard, the silenced, and the forgotten, along with the souls and spirits lost to violence and oppression. Accountability and a comprehensive understanding are key to moving towards change. The telling of stories from survivors is crucial for their recovery, crucial to ending the stigma, therefore crucial to justice. Accountability is prevention.
The message on the leaf is not a lame, feeble image for entertainment. There is no talent lended from the hornworms in the making of this leaf, they carve through the leaf with the need and natural instinct for nourishment, eating what is not covered by a template. The template guided the hornworms towards a critical message. It is not a science of the rockets or the colors black and white. No patent needed or warranted. Art is free to be. Censorship is driven by the oppressors, demanding silence against truth.
Conceptual Artist and Humanitarian. Intimate Partner Violence Advocate and Activist. Forging awareness and accountability while shining 💡 on Coercive Control and Narcissistic Abuse throughout our lives, in our home, the workplace, and our government. There is no peace without liberation.
Perfect Prey: Dr. Christine Cocchiola on Coercive Control (A MUST LISTEN)
Six Women Describe What It’s like to Be Stalked
Scientists' warning to humanity on insect extinctions
Global Climate Change and Trauma
•How Narcissistic Leaders Present a Danger for Democracy
•Pathological power: the danger of governments led by narcissists and psychopaths
•Dissecting narcissism within politics’ highest ranks
•Narcissism: Why It's So Rampant in Politics
•Arrogant Narcissism: The Essence Of U.S. Foreign Policy
•How the ancient Greeks kept ruthless narcissists from capturing their democracy – and what modern politics could learn from them
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Founder Gwendolyn Skaggs, in her studio cutting a template.
“Domestic abuse, also called "domestic violence" or "intimate partner violence", can be defined as a pattern of behavior in any relationship that is used to gain or maintain power and control over an intimate partner. Abuse is physical, sexual, emotional, economic or psychological actions or threats of actions that influence another person. This includes any behaviors that frighten, intimidate, terrorize, manipulate, hurt, humiliate, blame, injure, or wound someone. Domestic abuse can happen to anyone of any race, age, sexual orientation, religion, or gender. It can occur within a range of relationships including couples who are married, living together or dating. Domestic violence affects people of all socioeconomic backgrounds and education levels.”
A closer look at the 4-part cycle
The cycle of abuse, also sometimes called the cycle of violence, helps illustrate common patterns of abusive behavior in relationships.
It also helps provide clues toward a deeper understanding of why people experiencing abuse often find it difficult to break free. insecttalent
“The advent of climate change era has been affirmed by various global processes including 21 May 2019 recognition by the Anthropocene Working Group of ‘human impact’ in bringing profound alterations on planet earth. It has emerged as the predominant ‘world problematique’. Though entire populations are affected by climate change, women and girls suffer the most. Due to their traditional roles, women are heavily dependent on natural resources. As already seen, as a consequence of natural disasters and during Covid-19 pandemic in 2020-21, women have faced heightened real-life challenges specially being vulnerable to different forms of sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV). They suffer from a lack of protection, privacy, and mental trauma. Women are exposed to SGBV due to weak or absence of social, economic, political security and the culture of widespread impunity to the perpetrators. There is double victimization of women both as human beings and because of their gender. Effect of SGBV is highly injurious and perpetual. A close study of four main areas of international law does not yield any international legal instrument that deals with SGBV against women during and after the climate change induced disasters. This is more ominous when growing evidence suggests role of climate change in exacerbation of SGBV against women and girls. Even texts of the three specific climate change treaties (1992 UNFCCC, 1997 Kyoto Protocol and 2015 Paris Agreement) do not address this issue. It has been given attention only through the decisions of the Conference of the Parties in recent years. Due to serious psychological and bodily harm SGBV causes to women, it needs to be explicitly factored in respective international legal instruments on climate change and disasters. Amidst ignorance, denials and lack of adequate attention as regards impact of climate change in exacerbating SGBV against women and girls from the scholars and decision-makers in the field, this study makes a modest effort to deduce and analyze – from scattered initiatives, scholarly literature in different areas, existing international legal instruments and intergovernmental processes – the growing causal relationship between climate change and SGBV against women and girls so as to suggest a way out for our better common future. It is a new challenge for international law that needs to be duly addressed in a timely manner.” insecttalent insect talent