Monica Sjöö
Monica Sjöö, (December 31, 1938 – August 8, 2005), was a Swedish painter, writer and a radical anarcho/ eco-feminist who was an early exponent of the Goddess movement. Her most famous painting is the controversial "God Giving Birth" (1968), which depicts a non-white woman giving birth; it was censored multiple times and at one art show, Sjöö was reported to the police for blasphemy. Sjöö was the main author of "Towards a Revolutionary Feminist Art" (1971) one of the first, and most militant, feminist art manifestos. It was discussed widely in the feminist press, and "The Guardian  published an article in response. Ann Pettitt, one of the founders of the Greenham Common Women's Peace Camp, contributed to a later iteration. In 1976 Sjöö was the subject of a film documentary shown at the ICA and NFT. Sjöö wrote the original pamphlet that, with Barbara Mor's re-write and expansion, would become the book The Great Cosmic Mother" (1987). It covers women's ancient history and the origin of religion, and is one of the first books to propose that humanity's earliest religious and cultural belief systems were created and first practised by women. It  is currently in print and has been, and still is, a part of many women's studies, mythology and religious studies syllabi. Her research and writing helped uncover the hidden history of the Goddess"." Sjöö's successful use of interdisciplinarity in her research has led to its acclaim within the Goddess movement. Her art and writing became well known outside of the UK, and throughout the 70s, 80s and 90s she corresponded with influential American writers, artists and pagans such as Jean and Ruth Mountaingrove, Starhawk, Zsuzsanna Budapest, Lucy Lippard, Alice Walker, and Judy Chicago. Early life. Her parents were  the Swedish painters Gustaf Arvid Sjöö (1902–1949) and Anna Harriet Rosander-Sjöö (1912–1965), who divorced when Sjöö was three years old. She left school and ran away from home when she was 16. Sjöö traveled Europe and held a variety of jobs: she worked in vineyards and as a nude model at art schools in Paris and Rome. She first came to Britain in the late 1950s, and eventually settled in Bristol where – except for a period in Wales in the early 1980s – she lived for the rest of her life. Career. Early exhibitions. Sjöö's first exhibition was at  the Gallery Karlsson in Stockholm, Sweden in 1967. Having been a founder member of the Bristol Women's Liberation group, in March 1971, she participated in the first "Women's Liberation Art Group" exhibition held at the Woodstock Gallery in London. Later exhibitions. Starhawk described Sjöö's work as paintings that "transformed ancient images and symbols into contemporary icons of female power." Sjöö used imagery in her paintings which often references birth, the female body, and nature. All of these images were central to her beliefs regarding her "Cosmic Mother". She described herself as among the pioneers in this movement  of reclaiming female divinity – along with many other writers, artists, poets, and thinkers. In her art, she attempted to "holistically express" her growing religious belief in the Great Mother as the cosmic spirit and generative force in the universe. This was a critical component of her artwork. She claimed to enter a "state" of being or of mind where knowledge was available from past, present, and future. Yet, these abstract beliefs were grounded with a firm foundation of action and activism. She was involved with the anarchist and anti-Vietnam War movements in Sweden in the 1960s and was active  in the women's movement in Britain. Her political activism always grew out of her spiritual understanding of the earth as our living mother, similar to the beliefs of some Native American peoples. Sjöö's most famous painting, "God Giving Birth", (1968) depicts a woman giving birth, and has the title text painted in red capitalized letters. It is an expression of Sjöö's spiritual journey at that time and represents her perception of the Great Mother as the universal creator of cosmic life. The painting and its concept created much controversy and "God Giving Birth" was censored on several  occasions; at a group show in London the painting led to Sjöö being reported to the police for blasphemy. Margaret Harrison (1977) states that [on one occasion in 1970 several of Sjöö's paintings were banned from being shown in St. Ives during the St. Ives festival]. (...) "Monica then wrote in Socialist Woman (Nottingham) proposing forming a group or alliance of women artists. This led to the formation of the Bristol Women's Art Group (...)". Beliefs. Sjöö's work and beliefs centered on her respect and care of the Goddess, or Mother Earth. The Goddess was "the beauty of the  green earth, the life-giving waters, the consuming fires, the radiant moon, and the fiery sun". Sjöö's respect for nature and the environment was not mere belief but, for her, a spiritual truth. The Goddess / Earth is to be respected as the life giver. This respect is to be found not only in her imagery, but in two texts which chronicle her journey through the written word. Personal life. Sjöö believed heterosexuality was an unnatural state imposed by patriarchy, and later in her life she enjoyed a number of intimate romantic relationships with women. However after separating from her  second husband Andy Jubb, a composer, in the mid 1970s, Sjöö had an intense heterosexual relationship with Keith Paton who was a founder of the Alternative Socialism movement and, like Sjöö herself, a regular contributor to the alternative press, especially 'Peace News'. Under Sjöö's influence, Paton changed his name to Motherson (or Mothersson). Two of her three sons died young. In 1985 her youngest, Leify, was killed in front of her by an oncoming car at age 15. Her eldest son, Sean, died of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma in 1987, aged 28. She claimed that his death was exacerbated  by his experiences of rebirthing. Sjöö's experience of her loss made it into her work, in the shape of the painting "My Sons in the Spirit World" (1989). This was after the death not only of her eldest son, but also following a period of Sjöö not painting at all in grievance after losing her youngest son. Sjöö was highly critical of many of the ideas and personages of the New Age movement, including Alice Bailey, J. Z. Knight and "Ramtha", and Gene Roddenberry for some of the ideas behind "Star Trek". Sjöö died of cancer in 2005, aged  66. Artwork. Locations. Sjöö's art can be found in the Women's Art Collection at Murray Edwards College in Cambridge and at the in Skellefteå, Sweden. Some of her works are currently held in private collections of individuals: Sig Lonegren, Alice Walker, and Genevieve Vaughan hold a few, while Maggie Parks holds most of her art. The Temple of Goddess Spirituality dedicated to Sekhmet holds "Solar Lionheaded Sekhment of Primordial Fire" (1992, oil on hardboard) where it is displayed in the living room of their guest house.