Audio Version A woman sits, back to her spectator, fully exposed, yet unaware of the gaze that is placed upon her. It’s fixated - in awe. Enamoured by the beauty of the woman's skin uniquely marked by womanhood. As she gains comfort from the feeling of friction caused by the braided yaki hair being pushed by her thumb, spell-bound eyes follow the lines across her back, which like veins on a leaf are the imprint of an experience once lived.
This moment is one steeped in indulgence. One that has become less of a rarity. One that many more are choosing to experience, in which a spectator meets a subject in a shared space, yet is never met. Thus is left with questions to pose to their dutiful subject, had they shown an interest in a more active form of participation beyond sitting still and allowing one to gaze and wonder. Had the subject known that so many eyes were upon her, would she remain so calm? I guess not, one concludes imagining themselves in that position, scrambling in a split second of seeing the eyes for some extended piece of fabric to be whipped around themselves, just to grapple with the fact that sadly the saving of one’s dignity was not completed in time to offset the shame and humiliation that has engulfed their body, permeating every ounce of visceral fat that sits so obediently, creating perfectly formed folds of flesh. However, were the subject to see that these eyes were mesmerised by her beauty, would her reaction change? As these thoughts circle one’s mind with a number of scenarios playing out in the interlude, black printed symbols take hold of the spectator’s attention. As the retina adjusts to this new sight, the words ‘Challenge the Conventions’ blare boldly in their mind, before the revelation of the artist, the orchestrator of this moment of reckoning : Natasha Muluswela.
It was at a Bettershared exhibition in London that I first became familiar with the work of Zimbabwean born Natasha Muluswela. Her drawing Untitled was featured in the show. On first glance it looked like a photograph, black and white mainly with two patches of colour. However, further inspection would reveal a drawing. Executed with a pencil. The subject was a male with the most intriguing skin, peppered with freckles, accentuated by the grayscale of the graphite pencil. Each dark spot, which demarcating an area of melanin overproduction, had been formed to have its own accent, its own flavour and its own flair. But, despite their boldness, it was how the graphite incised and stained the paper to reinvigorate those full lips and that nose- gifts bestowed by Mama Africa- that really caught my attention. Those features were most prominent on the man in the position he held, head slightly to the side facing up as if his face was being gently caressed by the sun. Hand softly on his neck, eyes closed, he was clearly having a private moment of contemplation or sensual gratitude. A moment he was experiencing alone, yet we were all bearing witness to, as he stood bare chested, a nipple exposed, which could easily have been mistaken for a freckle. Exposed, vulnerable, yet content he stood as I watched his intimate moment. That of a black man unarmoured and bathed by the silken scent of satisfaction. The way his creator had portrayed his masculinity was so tender and I was immediately a fan.
I searched for more and became struck by the intricacy of Natasha's pencil drawings, which delicately capture the nuances of the human form-every unique line, freckle, blemish that one may acquire in their lifetime. The detail - the precision of her pencil stroke- the way in which she used colour in her near photographic images of the black body captivated me. Her works were stunning. However, whilst I was mesmerised by the beauty of her drawings, I did notice just how confrontational they were. They really had me thinking deeply, interrogating my perception of self. Why was it that I could look at these long, thin, rippled marks, essentially scars, stretching of the skin caused by rapid growth, on my own body and see them as grotesque, yet exquisitely beautiful in these drawings? I remember having to really grapple with this thought, thinking about every time I had pinched my ‘flab’ or repeatedly pressed my thumb along a stretch mark almost hoping it would magically disappear. This dissonance created by the viewings of her works, for me, elevated them beyond fine drawings of the hyper realistic style. I wanted to know more about Natasha. What her journey into art had been and what she was trying to say about the black body, both male and female, through her work.
Were you a creative when you moved to the UK?
No, I mean I did like to draw things like barbies and other little drawings. Much like any child, I was just interested in drawing, but I wouldn't say I was interested in art at all. I don’t think I was interested in art until I was about 18 when I left school.
What do you think got you into art?
It was a project I did in my A Level art class. May I mention, I was only studying art because I got good grades in it, not because I necessarily enjoyed it. I essentially happened when I had one art project that looked at hyperrealist artists. From that project I started to get really interested in it. I wanted to know ‘How does this work? What can I do?’ This introduced me to Kelvin Okafor and I did a little project on him and that’s when my interest really started to grow. That’s where it came from. Ever since that moment in year 13 to now that's when I’ve kind of been like ‘I like art!’
Did you take your art forward into university?
No. At university I actually studied languages. I did continue to draw. I was doing one piece a year and I also used to draw in my dorm room, so my friends would come in and be like that’s so good. I was just really only doing it in my free time. It wasn’t until after university when I graduated that I thought “you know what, let me see what I can do with this?” So I think my journey was kind of interesting because it has never really been my main focus, it’s always been in the background until maybe a few years ago.
How did you perfect your skill?
Just practice. Practising because when I was at home I would just draw every now and again. I didn’t have any formal training or watch tutorials.
What gets you into the studio?
Wanting to have a finished piece. I find it really hard to visualise different sections of the things I'm creating if they're not done so having a drawing that's half done motivates me to finish so I can see the complete piece. I also enjoy it. It's my passion. And I also find seeing other artists motivating. I get inspiration from them. There's some days where I don't want to to touch a pencil or see anything to do with drawing not even an eraser but when I see people who are passionate about what they do it's really motivating for me sit down and get the work done
How do you choose who to draw?
It’s definitely what I find interesting or what I find striking. What I see as beautiful, that’s what I draw.
Are your subjects people you know?
They’re images I’ve seen. So I’ll be scrolling on tumblr and I’ll be like OMG that’s cool. Let me see what I can do with that. For example, the guy with the freckles (Untitled, 2019), I came across him on Tumblr I think and ever since then i've been infatuated with his skin - like, I like that. I was so intrigued I really wanted to portray it in a detailed way because I can see how the freckles can be deemed imperfect but I find it so interesting and so beautiful.
Have you shown any of your artwork to the subjects you’ve drawn before?
Recently, the photographer that took the original picture of If I Don't Have You, 2020 DM’d me on instagram and he was like this looks very familiar. So that's when I saw that it was his photo I drew from. I died! but he was really really happy with it. So, I don't show the people directly, however I try to find the source of the photo before I draw it and give credit to the photographer.
Is there a reason why you choose to draw people that are anonymous?
If the people around me were able to express their bodies in that way, I think I’d be more inclined to focus on people I know, but mainly it’s just images I find interesting or intriguing to me. At the end of the day the subject could be anyone. It could even be myself, but I gotta find that special thing in it.
Is there some significance behind your use of colour?
It comes from me just wanting to experiment with colour because the majority of my pieces are pencil, so the colour pieces are an experiment of what I can do. I think maybe in the future I’ll do full colour pieces but for now I’ll do small sections to experiment.
What kind of social commentary do you think you’re making with your artwork around the topic of body image?
This is an interesting question. I don’t think I’ve really considered that. Exploring what isn’t deemed to be beautiful is interesting because in my eyes I see it as beautiful, I see no issue with these people’s bodies. I think it’s really highlighted for me that beauty is really in the eye of the beholder, so what could be grotesque to someone else can be absolutely beautiful to me. I think it also challenges my perception as well. I mean when I was a teenager, my stretch marks really bothered me but now I think it is something that is so normal but I didn’t realise until recently that it’s normal to have. When I see it on someone else it’s so beautiful but then when you take a step back and think about yourself it’s very different. It’s an added layer because I never thought about that until now really. I guess it is something I want to put in people’s faces.
What idea around masculinity are you trying to portray?
I’m trying to steer away from the toxic masculinity narrative. I want to explore the vulnerability behind masculinity. The male subjects in my work have an expression that doesn't scream powerful. He’s in a position where he’s vulnerable and I want to show that through my art. I want to move away from the strong man or strong woman. I want to show that all these people are feeling exposed and show that something behind the facade.
How would you say your work is being received?
The kind of feedback I get from lots of people is that they see themselves in the artwork. It’s been quite moving. I’ve also had a lot of plus sized women contact me and say that my work is beautiful and this is the first time they've really connected with a piece of artwork. Initially i’m flattered, but at the same time when I think about it, it makes me question, ‘Why has it taken so long?’ ‘Why hasn’t anybody looked at the female body like that before?’
I've also had a lot of feedback from artists and curators who say I need to be more vulnerable with my artwork. I've often wondered how I can be more vulnerable. Putting my artwork out there already feels vulnerable. It's scary.
How has the feedback you’ve received influenced you?
I think I need to be more vulnerable within in the artwork maybe focus on more vulnerable subjects for example. Maybe even focus on myself in a vulnerable way because I think that there's a distance between me and my art, we're very separate. I want to bring myself into the experience. I feel like I would look at myself in a completely different way instead of looking at other people and thinking oh my gosh they are beautiful but also taking the time to look at myself and think ok I really appreciate who you've become. Essentially I would actively be engaged in appreciating my body because that's something I never do.
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