Would he make a good wife? (Ephesians 5:21, 22: How does he show submissiveness in the family and co

Notes on artwork: This painting questions gendered submission and domination within a 'Christian' relationship. In order to destabilise gender, I have deconstructed the wording from contemporary Christian guidelines commanding couples in terms of their gender and roles of submission/domination and control. Swapping the words he/she, becomes 'Would he make a good wife? (How does he show submissiveness in the family and congregation?) Ephesians 5:21, 22. Christianity has given us the domesticated, controlled and submissive image of woman, and throughout most of art history, women have been presented as passive and controlled objects of the Male gaze. From the perspective of a female artist working from the female gaze, it has become apparent that explicitly sexual representations of men have always troubled dominant ideas of masculinity because male power is so tied to LOOKING, rather than being looked AT. It is my intention that this work will raise questions about gendered submission and control, and open up a discourse that interconnects with religion, social issues, philosophy and politics, challenging the notion of blasphemy and the freedom of expression.