GIRLHOOD / BOYHOOD

2024. 11 in. x 19 in. Luster paper prints.

These images were an exploration of gender, of what it means to grow up disconnected to your identity in an image-heavy, incredibly online world. One print is a self portrait, covered in blood, nudity and gore pixelated. Written over in marker is a journal entry about womanhood, comparing beauty to Tantalus’ punishment and my mother’s wish for me to have born a boy. The other is a posed image of traditional masculinity, echoing the Grand Theft Auto loading screen featuring a teenage boy flipping off his sister while gaming and smoking. In mine, boxers, Cheetos bags, and cigarettes litter the floor, flipping off a girl standing in the doorway. Marker and acrylic paint were layered over to add elements: a headset, a pin-up poster, and the framing caption: “Boy / What could have been.”