Wildriana Paulino: To Never Ache

Wildriana Paulino (b.1999) was born in San Francisco de Macorís, Dominican Republic. She is currently residing in New York City, where she recently received her BFA form the School of Art at The Cooper Union. Her research on femicide -the killing of women for the condition of being women- has led her to work with themes of femininity, violence, trauma, and alienation. Wildriana’s interest in the female experience stems from her own experience growing up in the Dominican Republic, where she grew up in a house with only women, no men. Growing up in a matriarchal household was then contrasted with the way female life is treated in the country. Femicide is a normalized crime in the Dominican Republic and little to no justice is done for the victims. After being exposed to this kind of violence, Wildriana began to relate the female body with earth itself. In this way, given the female experience the autonomy that is stripped away through femicide. To represent such accounts, she utilizes printmaking, painting, drawing, photography, and installation.