PussyKat Loading... | Maarquii
Maarquii Voice Memo
Curated by Thiến Mùi Easland
Exhibition: February 11th - March 16th 2022
Reception: March 8th, 2022 from 4:00 - 7:00pm
Show Statement - Maarquii
Radical exploration of sexuality, and trans womanhood
What does it mean for a Black woman to let herself fall apart? What blessings and treasure wait there? Who am I when I feel no guilt for rest and joy? Am I still worthy even if I didn’t labor to get it?
For this exhibit, I want to touch on the beauty and joy of being a Black trans woman. My goal is to highlight the beauty in our laughter, our language, and our love. We deserve to be celebrated and respected not just for the adversities we face but simply for the strength of being human beings, even though we are dolls.
While there are so many obstacles that come with walking through the world as a trans-woman, sometimes the biggest one to overcome is remembering the prioritize joy.
Fem Queen joy is radical, it is courageous, iconic, it is immortal.
That is why “PussyKat Loading…” focuses on the beauty, the wonder, the adventure, and the pride of the Black Trans woman.
Artist Bio
Judy Butay Cacal is a Filipino-American artist from Waipahu, Hawaii. The concepts of Cacal’s initial artwork stem from her academic studies at the University of Hawai’i at Manoa. She received her Bachelor’s of Science in Tropical Plant and Soil Sciences in 2018, and during her junior year in college, Cacal enrolled in an introduction to drawing course where she learned the fundamentals of drawing.
Briefly, after working with the state of Hawai’i as a Plant Quarantine Inspector, Cacal understood her true passion: creating art centered around the plants, flowers, and fruits she surrounded herself with. She has found success within her first year of opening her online store Butay Art LLC where she has made hundreds of national sales of her self-designed bookmarkers, stickers, and prints.
Colored pencil on toned tan paper is Cacal’s most practiced medium and has recently begun to include oil painting and digital software in her art repertoire. She uses blending and shading techniques that soften bright colors just enough to evoke calmness without completely silencing the colors’ natural vibrancy.
The fascination of flora along with the love for femininity are themes that often influence Cacal’s art, and she hopes these concepts are given voices for the audience to listen for in the exhibit A Sweet Love Language.
