Maria Lee-Warren

In my work, I want women, and their experiences, to feel seen. I use visual metaphors to convey a variety of experiences that are unique to women. In my oil paintings, I explore the intricate relationship between women and flowers, challenging traditional narratives and portraying the flower as a symbol of liberation. I examine how women have often been confined to having their worth evaluated on their beauty and fertility, acknowledging their historical objectification. My work investigates feminist symbolism, and it echoes Georgia O’Keeffe’s exploration of flowers and female anatomy, inviting viewers to confront the details of unfurling petals and reproductive systems. I see the flower as both a metaphor for women, but also as a mask. The flower is the outer mask that women wear to thrive and survive within society. Building on the 17th and 18th-century tradition of botanical illustration by women— one of the first ways women accessed the sciences—I draw inspiration from artists like Maria Sibylla Merian and Elizabeth Blackwell.

I am inspired by abstract pioneers such as Joan Mitchell, Zao Wu-Ki and Hilma Af Klint – yet I also draw influence from impressionist painters such as Berthe Morisot – as well as painters who walk the line between abstract and figurative work, such as Georgia O’Keefe.