Two Mother's Days Out at the MFA

Rarely will you find anyone so passionate about her life's work as May Stevens, artist, feminist and political activist. She may look petite, but her ideas are overpowering and inspiring qualities inherent to her visual artistry.

Fourteen of May's captivating paintings are on display at the Museum of Fine Arts, ten from her Ordinary/Extraordinary series, and four from her Women, Words, and Water series. Together, these elemental paintings form the main structure of her new exhibit, Images of Women Near and Far and highlight two decades worth of work by this contemporary figurative artist.

In a series of paintings influenced by her two "mothers"--her "real" mother, Irish Catholic housewife Alice Stevens, and her "spiritual" mother, Jewish revolutionary socialist Rosa Luxemburg--Stevens creates an emotionally-charged vision of her two main inspirations. Through visual means, Stevens strives to bring Rosa closer to herself in spirit, thus developing a sense of intimacy that she lacks in her relationship with Alice. At the same time, she creates distance between herself and Alice in an effort to separate herself somewhat from experiencing her mother's continual suffering. Her exploration of Rosa and Alice in various settings accentuates the contradictory nature of their lives, yet also celebrates and honors each woman as "ordinary/extraordinary."

Steven's endeavors to recreate emotions about Alice and Rosa seem to climax in "Forming of the Fifth International," her visual fantasy of an imagined conversation that takes place between her two mothers. The women are placed side by side in a picturesque landscape, as though they are pleasantly enjoying each other's company. The peculiarity of this painting, however, lies in the dichotomy in character of the two figures--one being vocal and active, the other mute and passive. This opposition is a source of false tension and unrealized emotion that does not quite work as well as her other paintings. It's quite obvious that May enjoys the underlying significance of her fantasy, yet there exists a gap between her vision and our observation.

"Go Gentle" is one of the more meaningful pieces in this series. Quite simple in actual design, the painting has an extremely complex nature that reflects Steven's perception of her real mother, Alice. In a sort of tribute to her mother, the work includes different moments of Alice's life, snapshots that slowly dissolve from black and white to faded gray. My own eye was immediately drawn to the central image of her dying mother, a frozen moment that captures the reality of pain and suffering. It embraces simultaneous feelings of understanding and empathy, powerful forces that reflect the strong bond between mother and daughter. With a title meant to contradict Dylan Thomas's poem about his wish for his own father, Steven's painting resonates with a wish for her mother to "go gentle" towards a peaceful death.

What's unique in much of Stevens's work is her ability to convey emotion in simplistic terms. Having already explored the juxtaposition of two noteworthy individuals in her first series, she sought to incorporate something different, yet equally effective, into her second series entitled Women, Words, and Water.

Taken by Julia Kristeva's words about women's desire and by Virginia Woolf's ideas about the oppression of women and self-realization through work, Stevens entered another phase in which she merged visual and literary artistry into her paintings. "Sea of Words" is one product of her experimentation. Four faceless women are presented in skiffs, struggling against a blur of repeated words accented in gold and white lettering a metaphor for women activists who are struggling to go somewhere, to achieve some goal. According to Stevens, using words is like employing "another tool, another color." Indeed, this method works well. The combination of visual and literary elements had a phenomenal impact on me, as I found the painting to be particularly intriguing and expressive. The image of women drowning in a sea of inspired language is enrapturing and indicative of Stevens's trademark realism.

Stevens is often criticized for telling too much about the underlying meaning of her work. Some critics say she should just "let go" and allow the paintings to speak for themselves. As an observer who prefers to make my own interpretations of an artist's work, I was surprised at how much I enjoyed hearing her secrets. It's a shame for those who don't get the chance to witness her passion in person. Listening to Stevens speak about her art was like uncovering hidden treasures, delectable for the eye and the mind. All is not lost, however. Anyone can experience the intensity of May Stevens's person by viewing this exhibit and encountering through paintings the dynamic woman who created it all.