French Artist and Illustrator Breaks Down the Stigma and Stereotypes About Women with Her Empowering Drawings

These realistic illustrations represent harsh situations that every woman has faced at least once in her lifetime.

Stephanie

Published in Cartoons / Anime
29 Oct 2021

French Artist and Illustrator Breaks Down the Stigma and Stereotypes About Women with Her Empowering Drawings

French illustrator Cécile Dormeau has built a following by drawing what many women are told to hide. Her work pushes back against beauty standards, body shame, and the pressure to look perfect all the time.

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After studying design in Paris and working in Germany, Dormeau eventually returned to France and focused on illustration. Since 2015, she has used bold, honest drawings to explore body positivity, self-acceptance, insecurities, and the everyday awkwardness of being a woman.

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Her images are funny, sharp, and uncomfortably relatable, and that is exactly why they stand out.

1. Mental health is very important.

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2. Books are people's best friends, alongside furry ones, of course.

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3. Exclusive COVID-19 edition.

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4. Learn how to love yourself just the way you are.

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5. Listen up, folks; this is not how fighting depression works, so please stop.

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Her drawings keep getting more direct from here.

6. Not the scenario she was hoping for.

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7. You don’t have to feel pressured by those hyped individuals; it is okay.

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8. Feminine and also feminine.

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9. A vicious circle.

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10. You have to follow COVID-19 regulations.

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11. Body positivity is important.

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12. Expressing your opinion is also important.

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She keeps turning everyday pressure into something hard to ignore.

This also hits like someone weighing girlfriend versus friends to protect their mental health break.

13. Equal standards for both women and men.

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14. Socializing can be hard sometimes.

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15. Not everyone is good at sports.

In 2020, Cécile faced a creative block.

As she mentioned in one of her interviews, “After accumulating professional creative projects that weren't very stimulating, along with the pressure from Instagram (to post all the time and receive likes constantly), I actually lost inspiration last year. You add that to the pandemic climate, and I was just unable to create anymore; I felt empty.But I realize now that this is how life works: in cycles. There will be periods of time when you are super creative, followed by times when you are unable to create anything. You just have to embrace it, rest, take care of yourself, and it will come back!” 15. Not everyone is good at sports.