The Energy of the Feminine (Guanyin's Vase)

Xinyi Zhang

The Energy of the Feminine (Guanyin's Vase)

Acrylic on Canvas

24" x 18" x 7/8"

2022

$8,000

What would the world look like if we honored and valued the Feminine within ourselves and within others equally as the Masculine? For most of human history, from the Neolithic period up to around 5000-3000 BC, this was the status quo. In civilizations from China (Yangshao Culture) to Europe (Minoan Crete) to the Middle East (Çatalhöyük), egalitarian(and often matrilineal) societies predominated. Men and women came together in partnership, participated equally in all aspects of society and government, and were buried alongside each other with grave goods of equal value. Venus figurines celebrating fertility and the creative power of the Feminine were found across continents, and people lived in relative peace, in harmony with nature... The Feminine capacities of creativity, intuition, birth/death/rebirth, nurture etc, were not seen as lesser-than, but valued equally as the Masculine capacities. Now, after thousands of years, the scales are slowly rebalancing. But there is still much healing and renewal that has yet to occur. Women in many parts of the world still cannot have influence or power without marriage to a man, still have no control over their bodies, are still treated as lesser than or inferior. Even in “developed” nations, the lack of parental leave and pay, salary differences between certain occupations (the arts, nursing) are reflective of this imbalance. This painting is a tribute to the Feminine Energy. I myself, have suppressed and hid Her for many years, but now, I’m finally coming to understand her full beauty and power.