Virginia Woolf wrote that the extraordinary woman relies upon the the ordinary woman. I think we can elaborate on Woolf's statement. Both extraordinary and ordinary women must rely upon each other in order to survive and flourish in our patriarchal society. The problem we face as women, is that this is a man's world with men-controlled media. More often than not, we are presented with unrealistic female icons (i.e., Baywatch babes) that are meant to serve as role models, but in reality, serve as little more than caricatures. I need women who bleed every month. I need women who understand the power that bleeding gives us.

Rhodessa Jones, actress, activist, writer, performance artist, bleeds. Through her art she has devised a means, clear and composed, yet deeper and more suggestive, for exposing us not only to what we say, but what we don't say. This makes her a formidable role model; more significant than what we find strewn across the covers and pages of most magazines.

Ms. Jones brought her show, The Blues Stories: Black Erotica on Letting Go, to Portland, Oregon, last summer. Using a series of brightly painted cloth panels, each styled to depict a different event, Ms. Jones examines her life and in so doing, unabashedly explores her vulnerabilities, her loves, her losses, her journey towards self-discovery. She provokes the audience to give it up themselves and answer the questions: What is love? Who have you loved? And, perhaps most wrenching, who has loved you?

During our conversation, we spoke not only of her art and spoken word performances, but also of the Medea Project Theater for Incarcerated Women--a project Ms. Jones co-founded and remains active in as artistic director. The project, which is aimed at providing outreach to incarcerated women through theater arts, was formed 7 years ago and was the birthplace of Ms. Jones award-winning, Big Butt Girls and Hard Headed Women.

   
photo: dawn kish