Maidy Morhous - Feminine Influence- ARTSCOPE Magazine

"Breaking ground" a presentation of 55 conceptually and materially diverse works of art - painting, photography, ceramics, fiber, printmaking, mixed media, sculpture and bronze - by 46 contemporary women artists of the Massachusetts chapter of the National Association of Women Artists, Inc. (N.A.W.A.) asks "Does being a woman artist influence your style, subject, medium?

"Breaking Ground" speaks toward what's happening in contemporary art today while relating female experiences. Carol Pelletier, chair and professor of arts at Endicott College indicates: "Although the subject of this exhibition leans toward the feminine. I find that the artists are also part of a larger discourse - one that is filled with social commentary., figuration, abstraction, and minimalism. Although the exhibition leans toward the conservative, there are some standout works of art. This is why special attention should be given to Mary Hurwitz, Linda Lippa, Nella Lush, Maidy Morhous, and Mary Alice Orito.

Clothing and the body is the central motif of Morhous's two bronze works, "Zip it!" and "Phases of a Woman". Both of these pieces are clever and insightful. In "Zip it!", a bronzed torso of a woman with a zipper in the front partly pulled down, Morhous is talking about the battle that women must handle every day regarding the exposure of their bodies in public. It explores the strange and frustrating dichotomy over female nudity and control in which we are told to "Zip it!" as metaphor for "shut up". Morhous was honored with a First Place Award for her bronze sculpture "Zip it!".

"In Phases of a Woman" Morhous bronzed three pairs of different sized and shaped female underpants; one belonging to a child, another to a mother, and the last being the style of a young woman. The three panties are joyful and make clear reference to the triad moon of women's lives - the maiden, mother and grandmother - the three graces or the classic three ages of women.