2011 Nobel Peace Prize Winners - Divided Among 3 Women

2011 Nobel Peace Prize Winners illustrated:

* activist LEYMAH GBOWEE of Liberia

* Liberian President ELLEN JOHNSON SIRLEAF

* rights activist TAWAKULL KARMEN of Yemen.

According to the Nobel committee in Oslo, these 3 women were chosen "for their nonviolent struggle for the safety of women and for women's rights to full participation in peace-building work. We cannot achieve democracy and lasting peace in the world unless women obtain the same opportunities as men to influence developments at all levels of society."

LEYMAH GBOWEE helped organize and then lead the Liberian Mass Action for Peace which confronted the country's president, changed the infrastructure of men and women in her country, and brought an end to the Liberian Civil War in 2003. Their demonstrations culminated in his exile and the election of Africa's first female head of state Ellen Johnson Sirleaf (also a Nobel winner) . She was the central character in the 2008 documentary filmPray the Devil Back to Hell.

PLEASE WATCH!

Here is a Must-See 5 minute introductory video about Leymah Gbowee. LEYMAH VIDEO

(I could NOT EMBED THIS VIDEO unfortunately! PLEASE click to watch!)

Liberian President ELLEN JOHNSON SIRLEAF, knicknamed the "Iron Lady," was the world's first elected black female president (2006) and is the first and only elected female head of state in Africa. She has declared a zero tolerance policy against corruption and has made education free for all children. She said the peace that had ended 14 years of civil war should be attributed to the country's women who stood up against the former dictatorship. "My sisters, my daughters, my friends," she says,"find your voice."

For a lighter look at Ellen Johnson Sirleaf....See her here on THE DAILY SHOW WITH JON STEWART

Rights activist TAWAKKUL KARMEN of Yemen is the first Arab woman to win a Nobel Peace Prize. She is the president of Women Journalists Without Chains, a group campaigning for press freedom, and the public face of the 2011 Yemeni uprisings. Karmen has fought for human rights and the rights of women in a conservative Muslim and tribal society.

A Must-See look at Karmen in action! Tawakul Karmen VIDEO

(Again, this I'm not able to EMBED THIS VIDEO. Please click and watch!)

Who chooses the Nobel Peace Prize anyway, and why does it matter?

* Exposure matters. We may not have studied these 3 particular women's actions if we just saw their names in passing, now we're moved, inspired, and even changed.

* The award consists of a cash prize of $1.4 million.

Nominations are made from lawmakers around the world, university professors, previous Nobel laureates, and members of the Nobel committee (made up of 5 Norwegians chosen by their country's parliament).

The Nobel Peace Prize was created by Alfred Nobel, the Swedish scientist and industrialist.

(Illustrations by me)

Women in History Illustrated

VIVIENNE WESTWOOD (b.1941-_) British fashion designer and businesswoman.

"The only possible effect one can have on the world is through unpopular ideas." - Vivienne Westwood, designer

This is #9 in my series of illustrating 10 inspiring women in history.She is probably the most famous on the list, and is a continuous idol/source of creative inspiration.

I remember the mid-late 80's, in the working class midwest, when my friends and I would buy thrift store clothes (as much as you can stuff in a bag for a dollar), wear them in layers with tons of makeup and orange hair to school, and try to emulate her fashion. In reality, we probably looked more like goth bag ladies.

http://www.viviennewestwood.co.uk/

Women in History Illustrated

VICTORIA WOODHULL b.1838-1927 was a controversial leader in the women's suffrage movement as well as the first woman, along with her sister, to operate a firm on Wall Street. With the fortune they made, they were able to run a weekly newspaper addressing issues such as women's suffrage, labor politics, personal freedoms, marriage laws, legal and political rights, and social inequities. 50 years before women could vote, Woodhull ran for president of the United States, the first woman to do so. Her extreme ideas and reforms are still debated today. Illustration by me, in pen.

Women in History Illustrated

YAYOI KUSAMA 1929-_. Japanese artist and sculptor. Like her or not, (or fear her), Kusama is possibly the most important modern artist in Japanese history. Her work spans from 1950's conceptual paintings to environmental installations, usually characterized by the use of repeating patterns. In 2008, a work by Kusama sold for over $5million, the record for any living female artist. Yoko Ono has called her an early influence. My pen illustration is from a photo of her blending into her polka dotted wall circa 1968.

More information on Yayoi Kusama.

No. 2, oil on canvas, painted in 1959. Sold at Christies for record price.

Women in History Illustrated

RUTH GRUBER (1911-_) From Brooklyn, Ruth Gruber was an international correspondent, photojournalist, and writer. In 1931, she was the youngest person to receive a doctorate degree. In 1935, she wrote a series for the New York Herald Tribune about women under fascism and communism. During World War II, she was sent on a special mission to bring refugees and wounded American soldiers from Italy back to the US. She has written dozens of books based on her work in the Soviet Union, Israel, Palestine, and more, and documented these missions with photographs now up at the ICP in NY. A documentary about Ruth Gruber called "Ahead of Time" was released this year. I did the drawing in pen based on a passport photo of her from JAN 31, 1946.

Photos by Ruth Gruber

Women in History Illustrated

MAISIE WILLIAMS, actress. 13 year old character of Arya Stark in "Game of Thrones"! This little girl is one of the most inspiring characters in television history. Arya is sword wielding, witty, and independent. She rejects the notion that she must marry for power and influence like her older siblings. I haven't read the books so I cannot say what happens to this amazing character beyond season 1. Guilty pleasure; yeah, whatever. She is #5 in my women in history illustrations series. I did this in pencil. Nevertheless, I found her difficult to draw, not sure why.

Women in History Illustrated

MARIA MITCHELL (1818-1889) was the first American woman to work as a professional astronomer and astronomy teacher. She discovered a comet known as "Miss Mitchell's Comet" and was the first female member of the American Academy of Arts & Sciences. Women are still outnumbered by men in the sciences (1 in 7 is the latest trustworthy statistic I read) so I wanted to look for an inspiring scientist to draw. This is #4 in my series of women in history, done in pen.

Nellie Bly - 10 Important Women in History #3

Nellie Bly (1864-1922) is a fascinating women who I'm ashamed to say I knew nothing about before this week. She was an investigative journalist who wrote on controversial issues such as the plight of immigrants, women, and factory workers. She went undercover as a patient in a mental institution on Blackwell Island for 10 days, and returned to write her shocking piece chronicling the experience, which inspired reforms in New York's mental institutions. I chose her as #3 in my list of 10 Women in History Illustrated.

She was born Elizabeth Jane Cochrane but chose the new pen name based on a Stephen Foster song. She went to boarding school for only one semester and dropped out due to lack of funds. After moving to New York, she wrote for several publications and became a well known reporter. In 1889, Bly made her famous record-breaking trip around the world in 72 days, challenging the fictional hero of Jules Verne's "Around the World in 80 Days."

Her books and articles include "Around the World in 72 Days," "Ten Days in a Mad House," "Working Girls Beware," "Are You An Anarchist?" and many more which can all be downloaded here

Illustration by me. #3 colored pencil

(The list of Women in History is in no special order. It is about whoever is inspiring me this week. Also I'm behind in my goal of finishing all these illustrations by January 1st, due to being so busy last fall. I hope to do one per week from here on out in hopes of seeing drawing improvement and to get my skills up to par! )

10 Women in History. By December 31st.

Hannah Hoch (1889-1978), the 2nd woman in my "ten illustrations of women" series, was a German Dada artist, best known for her photomontage work, and being the only female among the Berlin Dadaists in the 1920's. Women and racial discrimination were often themes among her works, as well as political and social messages. The Dadaists were a self labeled anti-art movement which aimed at breaking the bourgeois painting convention typical at the time. She influenced further art styles including constructivism, surrealism, and futurism.

(Illustration by me....next drawing I'll challenge myself with more clothing depicted, my weakness)

And Hannah Hoch's work:

10 Women in History. By December 31st.

As a challenge to learn more about women in history, and in the process work on my illustration skills, I've decided to put up on my blog 10 women in history I've heard of but no very little about over the course of the rest of 2010. There will be a small explanation of what the particular woman has done, and a sketch by me that I'll spend only 1/2hour or so on. My drawing skills are extremely rusty. I look forward to this challenge and plan to find diverse interesting women in history in the process!

EMMA GOLDMAN

(drawing by me taken from her mugshots)



Emma Goldman was born in 1869 in Russia. She emigrated to the U.S. at age 17 and became a writer, revolutionary, and leading figure in the anarchist movement. She was imprisoned several times for inciting riots, distributing birth control literature, and for being associated with anarchists in a plot to kill President McKinley (she was released on the last one for lack of evidence). She believed drastic and sometimes violent actions were necessary, although distasteful, for the sake of revolution. She was vociferous in her campaign to advocate freedom of expression, equality and independence for women, education, union organization, and worker's rights.