sustained investigation 2021-2022
my theme for this sustained investigation is trans issues. as a trans person, i experience a lot of things (both negative and positive). with this theme, i wanted to express the difficulties and positives of being trans, and just the overall trans experience.
This piece is about internal vs external gender identity. I drew a person taking off their skin to show how trans people feel so differently on the inside then how they present themselves. I used more bright colors for the fake skin to show how exaggerated it is and over feminine. It seems fake. the actual skin is more greyscale to show how much more natural internal gender identity feels.
This piece is about trans people being forced into a binary. i used the box as a symbol for being trapped into a boundary. people force trans people into a boundary with how they should act, dress, and transition.
this piece is about how when i was younger i always hid behind costumes because they were the only thing at the time that made me feel like i fit in. i would like the fact that no one could tell my gender with a mask on.
My second piece is about how trans people have to deal with their legal documents not matching their gender identity and how difficult it is to change these documents. I wanted to show this struggle in the setting of an airport. Showing your legal documents that show your birth gender as a trans persom can be very dehumanizing and causes people to treat you as you birth gender no matter how you present yourself, or how ‘cisgender’ you look. This shows the blatant transphobia in the world.
this piece is about growth in my gender journey. i have a consultation scheduled next week for top surgery and it feels unreal. i wanted to make a piece that shows the gender euphoria i will feel once i get top surgery
this piece is about how important it is to surround yourself with people who accept you. as a trans person it is really hard to feel accepted, but now since i have really supportive/also trans friends it’s a lot easier to feel at home.
This piece is about growth. I chose to paint a moth coming out of its cocoon to symbolize me as a trans person growing within my identity. i’m very proud with how far i’ve come and excited to see my growth even more
my 4th sustained investigation is about trans body positivity. i chose to paint my girlfriend because she is a trans woman and i really wanted to express how important it is to love yourself as a trans person. i painted her with watercolors because i wanted it to be soft and fluid, and i put dried hydrangeas in the background because they represent femininity.
For this piece i wanted to show the struggles of being a trans masculine person and how binding everyday takes its toll. I showed the lengthy process of putting on my binder and how it is restricting and not very comfortable.
his piece i wanted to show that even going to a gender doctor and being prescribed Testosterone, I still have my deadname on my medicine. This is a struggle for me personally and effects me having to see that every day
this piece is about a couple of things. first it is about trans people of color and how they don’t get much representation in media. i wanted to draw my girlfriend, a trans woman of color, in order for her to get the representation she deserves. it is also about the people around me and how they support me through my transition. my dog has been a huge part of my life for a long time and he really helps me.
This piece is about trans intimacy. as trans people, we often struggle with dating because it’s very hard to find someone who accepts your identity and respects you. i wanted to do this piece about trans people dating other trans people because it is genuinely such a good experience.
this piece is about unsupportive family. being trans is hard, but coming out to family is even harder. feeling unloved by someone you used to trust is a very hard feeling and i tried to portray that in this piece