The blank canvas series is still going strong! This time, I’m focusing on the space of the bedroom—specifically the bed—as a symbol of transition, autonomy, and independence. I’m planning on painting a self-portrait silhouette in bed on these big canvases, so I’ve been diving into how other artists have used the bed in their work.
Beds have always been a big theme for artists, especially feminist ones. In the past, depictions of women in beds often reinforced traditional gender roles, portraying women as passive objects of desire. More recently, they’ve used them to explore personal space, bodily autonomy, and intimate experiences. The bed, with all its associations—rest, vulnerability, privacy—ends up being a powerful symbol for examining things like societal norms and identity.

Take Tracey Emin, for example. Her piece “My Bed” from 1998 is such an iconic example. She literally put her unmade bed on display, surrounded by things like empty vodka bottles and cigarette butts. It was raw, emotional, and really forced people to confront ideas about femininity, respectability, and the messiness of life.

Frida Kahlo also used the bed in her work, but for her, it was both a subject and her studio. After a bus accident, she was bedridden for long stretches and painted a lot of her self-portraits from bed. Her mom even built a special easel so she could paint while lying down, turning her bed into this space of creative power and resilience. Kahlo often depicted beds in her paintings, using them as a symbol of physical and emotional confinement, reflecting her struggles with illness, pain, and the limitations imposed on her body, as well as representing spaces of both vulnerability and resilience.

AFP PHOTO / ANP (Photo by ANP / AFP) (Photo by -/ANP/AFP via Getty Images)
Beds in art often highlight themes like personal space and bodily autonomy—especially for women. Feminist artists have used this intimate setting to challenge societal expectations and reclaim control over their bodies. Yoko Ono’s “Bed-In for Peace” with John Lennon is a great example. They turned their bed into a stage for political protest, inviting the media into their bedroom and subverting the idea of privacy.

Even contemporary artists like Njideka Akunyili Crosby have explored these ideas. In her work “Nwantint,” she paints herself sitting on a bed with her husband’s head in her lap, blending themes of interracial relationships, cultural identity, and personal histories. By setting it in the bedroom, she’s making a broader statement about the intersection of private life and social issues.

In Marina Abramovic’s installation “Dream Bed,” she invited people to not just interact with her art but to lie down in it. The “bed” was a minimalist, coffin-like structure with a snowflake obsidian crystal to ward off nightmares. Participants wore a puffy jumpsuit, mittens, booties, and opaque glasses, then either nap or daydream while inside. Abramovic sees the dreams as the real artwork, and asked participants to record them afterward, emphasizing the value of inner life and collective experience. “Dream Bed” challenges traditional notions of bodily autonomy and personal space, reclaiming the bed—a symbol of privacy and vulnerability—as a site of empowerment.
Basically, beds in art—especially feminist art—offer such a cool way to explore personal space, bodily autonomy, and societal expectations. Bringing something as private as a bed into public view makes us question our assumptions about privacy, sexuality, and identity. It’s fascinating how much the bed can symbolize, and it’s definitely inspiring my latest work.
I can’t wait to get started on the photo session for this piece!