Alexis Fant: F.S.A
Throughout my works, I have been drawn to the idea of essence– meaning, the intrinsic nature or indispensable quality of something or someone. Given the times, I especially wanted to be able to capture the very essence of Blackness. I wanted to capture this through a new, more positive, and intentional frame. Rather than focusing on the hardships that accompany being Black, I strive to capture the softness, the joy, and the beauty that encompasses the very essence of being Black.
For,F.S.A, I wanted to encapsulate the soft yet empowering elements of true female sexual agency. As a Black woman within America it can be challenging to express a sense of true sensual or sexual agency. This seems to be especially challenging in a society that perpetually hyper-sexualizes the Black female body, yet has simultaneously shamed, degraded, and disrespected the very bodies that they lust after. As one that has personally grappled with my sense of sexuality and my place within this lustful loom of young adulthood, I wanted to extend far beyond my comfort zone– a zone in which has been created out of fear, rejection, and judgement. Within this work, I want to take back the power. I want to express the beauty of control, empowerment, and unaltered sexual agency.
