KC CRIT CLUB

11/13/24

AN OVERVIEW OF MY WORK

My adoptive experience drives my interest in identity, specifically the origin of one’s identity, nature vs nurture. Having very little background to the nature of my identity, I feel a sensitivity towards how my being is perceived & received by my community and explore this sensitivity through oil painting, collage and soft sculptures. Perception, public audiences, is my only point of connection to concepts of heritage having my connection to my natural genealogical heritage completely severed. I am particularly tuned in to the performance of my gender as an inherited legacy, and am therefore interested in the origin of this performance. It seems I am the benefactor of the male gaze and an identity that is built on extractive logic. Having never met or seen a photo of anyone who shares my genealogical traits, western ideals of beauty & pornography are the closest thing I have to “photos of my ancestors”. I feel as though I am a collection of caucasian skin, light eyes, blonde hair (my natural hair color), and curves. My “traditional dress” is one that shows the shape of my body, the smooth softness of my hair, the evenness of my skin and color on my cheeks & lips.

MY CURRENT PROJECT

Through the use of hand dyed silk habotai & cheap costume wigs, I am creating a collection of soft sculptures with anthropomorphic features I call “birthday suits”. Using only the forms of spheres and cones, these mostly uninhabited vessels are designed to emulate aspects of my phenotypes. The fact that I have body parts is of no consequence, but rather these ingredients of western beauty influence & shape my human experience. Through this simulacrum, I echo back to a viewing audience real parts of me, that change with the season and through time, and that I often find simulated in salons, the makeup counter and the costume aisles.

WHAT I’D LIKE HELP WITH

  • I am partial to the use of fabric and hair for this collection. Insight on my use of fabric and hair and opportunities with these materials (respective to my concept) I may be overlooking. 

  • Contextualized Presentation: Insight on how to contextualize & display the birthday suits. 

  • I’m always interested in how a project reads in a cold viewing. Are there things I may be overlooking (good, bad or otherwise)?

Quick background on me: I moved to KC in 1996 from Dallas TX, graduated KCAI with a BFA in Graphic Design in 2000. I’ve worked for Hallmark Cards as a product designer / manager for almost 10 years & started 3 wedding businesses (and sold one of them). I plan to resume the Low Res MFA program at SAIC next summer. I also have a husband of 22 years, my only kids have fur, & I am learning electric guitar (having played about 3 years now).


THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME & INSIGHT!!