Hello, `miskis and first of all thank you for dedicating your time for this interview.

International Women's Week is coming up (3-9 of March) and so we devised a series of interviews for you, from deviantART's most wonderful women artists. They are as varied as you could imagine - photographers, stock artists, digital painters, web designers and more but they all share one common thing.
They are women.

<sub>"As many of us already have read, or know, women had to fight for their equal footing with the men, and in some parts of the world they are still very underprivileged. We as women still get paid less than men for same positions, a lot of us are undereducated, a number are being treated as commodity even slavery, forced into prostitution... We even have girls at extremely young age being forced into marriage with much older men, and what makes it even worse their bodies are underdeveloped for childbearing and many die during childbirth or suffer later from side-effects of it, such as weak bladder and lowering of the uterus, being outcasted by community and families. We still struggle to break the glass ceilings in the corporate world, and in many parts of the world women do not have right to vote, or even speak up.

So in order to change this, to give all those young women hope, and a drive to succeed we wanted to organise the event that will empower women, that will give women and girls strength to reach for their dreams, that extra push they need."</sub>

Today, we are superwomen. We are doctors, nurses, managers, secretaries and mothers.

Please tell us about yourself.

`miskis: Well, there's a novel in it's self.. the abridged version? I just turned 40.. which is a rush..I'm not sure I will ever feel '40'. I am the mother of 3 wonderful monsters two boys and a girl & I have a supportive, loving, dear husband.
I was born in the ghettos of Chicago, which may not seem like much but I am also bi-racial and having a black father and a white mother in the 60's /early '70's adds alot of civil rights and womens issues to my childhood, as well as moving and growing up in the ' white' suburbs of California.
I grew up creative, my mother always had some sort or artsy thing going on... hippie From the fun of painting the family VW Van (yes that was us in the hand painted hippie van) to making gods~eyes, playing with clay and everything in between. We moved a lot while I was pretty young but finally settled in Portland Oregon USA when I was around 7-8yo. From that point on it was just three 'women', my mother, my 18month older sister, and myself., as you can imagine I grew up doing all the things ' women ' don't usually do, and my sister grew up to be a master mechanic.


What do you think are the biggest issues for women in the world today?

`miskis: In the USA I think they are the same as they have always been. Equality, working and finding your nitch in the 'boys club' , balancing what societies see as ' womens work' with our own passions and wishes. Not every woman craves to be a soccer mom so to speak, and not every woman aspires to be a CEO. I think we as a gender put more pressure on ourselves to prove we are equal, we forget we ARE feminine! Instead of trying to beat them, we need to try and join them. In other regions there are a scope of issues, from girls missing out on an education because they cannot afford feminine hygiene products.. being subservient in more overt ways then in the US (ie: lower wages for the same job etc.) It appalls me that there are places where a woman can be beat if she speaks her mind / out against her husband or any man, that we/woman can't be trusted in the company of men alone because we are evil vixens., there are still many places that have yet to awaken to the fact that, as in all life, it is balance.. we cannot be without women. Childbirth is an amazing power., yet we also cannot be with out men.

Do you think there is an easy fix to this problem?

`miskis: There is never an easy fix. All you need to do is look at the history women in the USA have faced to simply get the right to vote. Back in they day when we had to sit in the back of town council meeting, speak only when spoken too. There is a saying ' Well behaved women rarely make history '..it takes revolution to change major ways of thinking.

Who are the women you look up to or inspire you the most? (it can be on dA or in real life)

`miskis: Number one, my mother, for more reasons then I can share, my big sister, single mothers, one of the hardest jobs there is and to have no partner to share the stress, fears and glories with, makes it all the more so. I adore Angelina Jolie, like all of us she has her issues, but I really do think her morals in humanitarian issues are pure. There are women whom I don't like on a personal level, some I totally disagree with morally, who inspire me simply because they 'do'. They don't let the boys club or society tell them they can't.

What inspires you about them?

`miskis: I kind of answered that already, the one thing they all have in common is that they do. They don't sit and say ' I am just one person / a lowly woman, I can't '. Society, polls, sometimes laws, be damn.. it is right.. and I can!

We know deviantART is a wonderful place to grow as an artist in. Do you think deviantART has helped you realise things about yourself in the context of being a woman? Has it helped you grow as a woman?

`miskis: As a woman.. personally no. I have a very strong sense of me as a woman and what I am capable of ingrained ,as I said before, from growing up with just three females and a very powerful strong mother figure who I still believe can do anything she puts her mind to. She really amazes me.

What message would you leave for the future women? (if you had a little sister, what would be the most important thing you would pass on to her?)

`miskis: Three words.. " Yes You can!!" You can build a rocket.. you can be a mother... you can rule a nation...you can change the world... if you want to. If it is what you aspire to do/be don't let anyone tell you you can't.... ever. As long as you have the drive, the passion, the will.. you can. I know it's a bit cliche' but it is truth.

We're women from dawn to dusk. Can you tell us of an event that your being a woman hindered you in?

`miskis: HAHA Volleyball? Nothing like boobs and having to jump around. Seriously? No. Not a one. I think for me it's almost been an advantage, people tend to underestimate a pretty face.

How would you suggest to fix that?

`miskis: For those that have? You know, education, believe in yourself. I cant think of any reason WHY being a woman should hinder anyone, so to those who have felt that way look inside you. Again, you can be or do anything.. if a mechanic takes advantage of you? Take a course in mechanics! Be in the know, it doesn't mean you need to get oil under your nails, it means you'll know if he/she is trying to screw you.. If a man get's ' your job ' JUST because he's a male?.. find a lawyer! You need to be your own salvation, start a revolution. Benazir Bhutto is a great example of this. Her passions may have ended her life, but I know she wouldn't change anything she has done.

What do you think is the most important thing people should realise about women?

`miskis: We can be strong and still feminine. We can be smart and still sexy. Just because we are feminist doesn't mean we hate men. *loves men* lol.. Just because I can change my own brake pads (thank you sister dear) doesn't mean I don't need you! Now.. please come make my electronics work!
And men., just because you cooked a wonderful meal, did a load of laundry, and took little Sara to her dance practice, doesn't mean you don't need us or makes you less manly. ( it really makes you kinda sexy. )

Is there anything you would like to add?

`miskis: You have to keep your humor about such thing. Men and women are different, in more then just our sexual organs. We as a species need to learn to work together with our strengths and weaknesses. It's about balance... life is about balance. Now.. if the rest of the humans could figure that out!


Again, thank you `miskis for taking the time to let us get to know a woman's life from up close.

Some gems from `miskis's gallery:



For more information about International Women's Week visit ^sbaraci or *int-womens-week.