In this work, I wanted to express my feelings about how others and myself unnecessarily politicize my body through societal structures. I portray myself as a deconstructed medical drawing with paper stakes (the "labels" of the anatomical drawing) piercing my body. I wanted to cause the viewer objectify my body through the very anatomical and scientific nature of the drawing, while simultaneously forcing them to feel their implication in the mutilation of my non-politicized body by including a piece of humanity through the preservation of my face. By choosing to create a scientific rendition of my body, I further highlight the absurdity of the placement of social labels on the human body rather than purely scientific. In the anatomical drawing, I took out my organs, to show my emptiness and lifelessness due to the projection of social categories onto my body. By keeping flattened. By placing myself into a post-mortem bag where the labels pierce through it, I make the viewer feel as if they just witnessed a butchery. I show that society has already killed me, and no attempt in protecting my body from the oppression of societal labels will save me or any of us. , The addition of the interactive aspect forces the viewer to participate in projecting social constructs onto my body, further emphasizing the absurdity of attempting to label aspects of my body.
Charcoal on newsprint. Mixed Media. 50x90 in.
