I'm an artist. It's a short sentence. Simple. Yet typing that out is scarier than one might assume. It feels very vulnerable... and raw. Terrifying actually. I guess it's because I'm aware that a lot of people won't like the art I create and as a recovering perfectionist, that's tough. Most of the time I have the tools to move beyond the fear of rejection but the doubt still follows me like a shadow. Imposter it whispers loudly.
It's been a journey to get to this point, where I can claim the title of artist. A long journey. A complicated one, full of long detours, bumps, pot holes, flat tires, wrong turns, and, well, a couple of life-altering crashes. That's actually why I started creating again, the life-altering crashes. I was manically holding together a perfect-looking life and I needed some of my rather inconvenient emotions to go somewhere "else". So I started painting. For years my artwork remained hidden from everyone other than visitors who came to my house and asked if I had replaced everything on the walls with my own artwork. Yes, I answered, always with a mix of amusement tinged with embarrassment. The stacks in the corners of various rooms were growing thicker every week.
I have always been prolific, but I wasn't ready to share. I was still someone who was spending much of her time trying to be perfect. And my art isn't perfect! I'm untrained, inconsistent and get bored with repetition. I'm not interested in mastering anything and my projects rarely exceed 5 or 6 similar works. All of my research confirmed over and over again, that it would be an impossible pitch when approaching galleries and art shows. "Hi! I'm Geneviève and I'm like a box of chocolates! You never know what you're going to get!"
It turns out though, that I eventually learned that my so-called weaknesses, are actually my superpowers. I'm proud to be self-taught, curious, and bold. I love to experiment and I bring passion and a growth mindset to everything I do. I'm consistent about exploring art through a feminist lens and seek to provoke conversations about social equity and dismantling systems that only serve the interests of the 1%.
Come to think of it, my name is Geneviève LeDuc. I'm a feminist, a multi-disciplinary artist, and beautifully imperfect. Nice to meet you. Do you like chocolate? Great! You're in for a treat!