Tatyana Fazlalizadeh has taken it to the streets with her newest project, Stop Telling Women to Smile. On behalf of women everywhere, the ladies featured in her portraits speak directly to offenders of gender-based street harassment, telling them things like, “My name is not Baby,” and “My outfit is not an invitation.”
Kareem Gonsalves/Quiet Lunch Magazine.
Though this is Fazlalizadeh’s first foray into street art, she brings her skills as an oil-based illustrator into the process by first drawing portraits of women, and then making copies on massive pieces of paper. These copies are what end up on mailboxes and walls on the streets, in the form of paste ups–a wallpaper application of the posters to a surface.
You probably won’t catch her in the act, as she does it under the cover of the night, and with the kind of grace and speed that is only learned through practice. She’ll nimbly unfurl a poster, spray it with glue, and brush it flat with a paintbrush, and already be down the block before you’d realize it. Check out the video below to hear more about the inspiration for Tatyana’s project, and keep your eyes peeled on the streets for some women-empowering posters by the lady herself.
Courtesy of Tatyana Fazlalizadeh’s Website.
Courtesy of Tatyana Fazlalizadeh’s Website.
Courtesy of Tatyana Fazlalizadeh’s Website.
Kareem Gonsalves/Quiet Lunch Magazine.
Kareem Gonsalves/Quiet Lunch Magazine.
Catherine LeClair is a Maine native who is still confused by suburbs but can now successfully hail her own cab. She didn’t wander too far down the coast; after recently graduating from Boston College with a degree in English, she now lives and works in Boston. In her free time, Catherine enjoys going to local shows, finding great nacho joints, and scoping out cute dogs on the street. Please do not try and call her Cathy.