Got a Girl Crush On: Tatyana Fazlalizadeh’s “Stop Telling Women to Smile” street art project

Similar to projects like Holler Back!, artist Tatyana Fazlalizadeh decided to enlarge the problem of harassment by viscerally bringing it to everyone’s attention. There is no denying or confusing these wheatpastings from other street art–this is addressing everyone who walks by to rethink what some may think as harmless.

Stop Telling Women to Smile is a street art project that addresses gender based street harassment.

The project consists of a series of portraits of women - women who I have sat talked with about their experiences with harassment. The portraits are designed into posters, including text that is inspired by the subject’s experiences. And then I wheat paste. 

STWTS started in Brooklyn in the fall of 2012. It is an on-going, travelling series and will gradually include many cities and many women participants. 

Street harassment is a serious issue that affects women world wide. This project takes women’s voices, and faces, and puts them in the street - creating a bold presence for women in an environment where they are so often made to feel uncomfortable and unsafe. 

If you want to call attention to this issue too, Fazlalizadeh has STWTS shirts & prints, too.