Original Realistic Sculptures
One of a Kind
Let The Women Speak Series
Juliana was invited to work on this project in partnership with CADVA, a non-for-profit that aims to combat domestic violence. The artist produced five sculptures to illustrate the power and voice of different women and victims of domestic violence: Babita Sarjou, The Angelas, Abayomi, Red Flags and The Phoenix.
Babita Sarjou went missing on November 4th, 2010 and her skeletal remains were discovered in May 2016 in her stranger husband's backyard buried in 4 feet of dirty water.
It was the support of the team of CADVA that fought for an open investigation to get this case back into court.
Babita was a mother, a sister, a daughter, an aunt, a friend too many. And one of many women killed by Domestic Violence Homicide.
Sculpting Babita was like bringing her back by giving her a voice when her voice was taken from her. This doll provides an opportunity to not only tell Babita's story, but the stories of so many other women.
These sculptures are meant to bring awareness to the fact that we must protect our children. Listen to them, observe their changes.
If you know a child that is being abused or suffering domestic violence, don't remain in silence. Speak out, make their problems also your problems.
The Angelas dolls are not just one woman, they are a representation of all the children that suffer
sexual abuse by someone they trusted.
A child made into a woman, the lost
of childhood, a pain that they
will never be able to forget.
Abayomi is named after an African doll with is a symbol of resistance.
The woman who inspired the sculpture, who preferred to remain anonymous, suffered brutal violence from her ex husband.
She had her both arms cut off - arms that now keep her upright in a powerful image of strength.
Abayomy represents the power in every woman I know. Her facial expression conveys serenity and lucidity with signs of quiet sorrow. It is both heartbreaking and ironic that she is better off without arms than with an abusive husband.
Her physical disability is accompanied dy her spiritual psychological freedom.
The piece is about overcoming an atrocity:
it is about hope.
Abayomi gazes at the horizon, at the future.
The arms that sustain Abayomi represent her inner strengh. her consciousness: rolled in mother earth, they lift her up above a world of injustice.
This sculpture is a representation of the many red flags us women tend to ignore in our lives and relationships.
It is a message of awareness about abusive relationships, displaying the see-through blindfolds that so many of us wear while choosing to ignore the signs.
The blindness, with is caused by fear of loneliness or romanticized unconditional love can be reverted. The beautiful bride is surrounded by thorns and trapped in a setting that could be avoided.
We must educate women so they can see and understand the red flags of abusive relationships, protecting them from an unhappy ending.
The Phoenix is inspired by the story of Jasmine Yilmaz.
It represents resiliency, pain, and endurance.
Even though she lost her entire family is the Syrian Civil War, even though she was forced into having an abortion, even though it led to severe health and emotional issues, including the unlikelihood of another baby, and even though she was discriminated for being a single divorced woman, Jasmine is not only searching for help, but she is willing to help others: rising like a phoenix from the ashes.
Jasmine Yilmaz's kindness and strength serve as inspiration to all of us.
Confidence
Media: Polymer Clay
Size: 5"x 4"x 8"
made in 2020
Confidence is a happy woman in harmony with herself. She loves her body, knows who she is and is proud of her values and qualities. You can see it in her eyes: it's so easy to love her! Confidence knows that her body type does not fit the society standards, but she also knows that nobody should worry about those since they are unrealistic and shallow. When she is attacked by someone blinded by society and bothered by her powerful image, her answer is very simple: ‘Only a human suffering great emotional pain has the need and the capability to attack another based solely on their appearance. I am sorry for you and hope you can feel better one day
Caught
Media: Polymer Clay
Size: 5"x 4"x 8"
made in 2019
What was she doing? did she get accidentally caught or she had it all planned?
Caught was the first version sculpted from this model, with a slightly different face expression and a complete different concept.
The Boys
Media: Polymer Clay
Size: 8 1/8 x 10"x 5.5"
made in 2020
The three boys are definitely up to something. What is it? We can only guess! The Boys is part of my new series called “Simple Joy”, a collection of sculptures showing that happiness resides in the simplest of things, such as friendship.
Big Little Sister
Media: Polymer Clay and Resin
Size: 14.5"x 5,5"x 5.5"
made in 2020
Big sister shows the love between siblings, they don’t need more than each other to reach happiness. She is a very young little girl and carrying her brother is not easy, but she won’t measure efforts to give him what he needs.
Seeds
Media: Polymer Clay
Size: 7.8" x 5.3"x 5.3"
made in 2019
Once upon a time, in a land as dark as night
Where nothing would grow, in despite of every woe
There was an unusually happy girl.
Since she loved joy and since she loved beauty
She decided that it was her duty
To plant sunflowers on the dry hard sand
And perhaps her hands would help to mend
Through the soil the turmoil of that land.
The people there, seeing her endeavor
Smiled again, and thought they would forever
As they noticed flowers, strong and bright
And found they were tired of the night.
The evil forces, however, frowned
And opening a hole up in the ground
Watched her being swallowed deep
Until she could no longer speak
Or see, or dream, or sigh… or resist.
But what they could not predict was this
Her love was such that it spread across the mud
A thousand flowers grew, nourished by her blood
Now every time a flower is plucked
Many more will grow in impressive speed
And the girl shall always, for her deed
Be remembered by the name of Seed.
Devotion
Media: Polymer Clay
Size: 4.75"x 5"x 14.75"
made in 2021
You might think it’s all about spinning with the world and letting the magic sink in. But behind a perfect dance there’s extraordinary devotion. Raising children, our most beautiful creations, is no different. Each movement is a word of affection in the stage of life as a poem made of actions unfolds, and each sleepless night is worth the practice. A ballerina who continues to dance during pregnancy is a mother who will introduce her child to a world of beauty, strength, and balance.
Dreamer Girl
Media: Polymer Clay
Size: 7"x 4.2 "x 4 "
made in 2020
Dreaming knows no age, no timeline. The past and the future get tangled up amidst our desires and fears. But to dream is to believe. Some will dream by looking back, others by looking ahead. The liveliness of teenage dreams often comes with high expectations and anxiety, whereas mature dreaming may carry the weight of what-could-have-beens. Nonetheless, dreams are always full of hope. And hope is the most important thing in life. Our dreams make us who we become. Never stop dreaming.
This sculpture was inspired by a picture taken of me as a teenager. It is not meant to be a portrait, but the picture served me as inspiration to sculpt a shy, naive and very romantic girl full of dreams to pursuit
Sunshine
Media: Polymer Clay
Size: 4" x 3.75"x 11.25"
made in 2022
Oh Sunshine!
Life can get busy, stressful, painful, sad… The modern days make us forget to live the moment, to enjoy the beauty that is offered to us by nature…
Sometimes all we need is to breathe, to feel the sun warming our skin, receive its energy and remember who we are, just being there, in that moment, existing.
Sunshine represents this magical moment, to remind us who we are and that we don’t need much to be happy.
Iná- The Proud Mother
Media: Polymer Clay
Size: 10.5 x 3.5 x 3.5
made in 2020
"Iná, The Proud Mother" is a sculpture about motherhood without privileges.
As a native, she is aware of her nation’s struggles and is ready to raise a future warrior that will protect the rights of her people.
Her facial expression shows the pride and the hope she carries in her arms and in her heart: Strength and love for the journey that lies ahead
Girl on The Lake
Media: Polymer Clay and Resin
Size: 1:7.5 scale
made in 2016
Just a girl and a lake