Growing Panes
Growing Panes is a self-portrait collage that is made up of 24 individual images. Each image was created with a mixture of cyanotype and gelatin on thin glass panes. These images were then wrapped with matte washi tape and had small wooden blocks glued to the back for hanging them on the wall.
This series was created to explore and embrace the changes my body has made throughout its transition. My first big art series relating to my body was Body History, which really helped lay the foundation for all of my later work. Growing Panes, was created to mirror that project, but also explore the changes I have made in my life as a person and an artist. Small boxes were used to distort parts of my body that cause me dysphoria, and make it hard to live my life the way I want to. Dysphoria has been a huge driving force throughout my works and this piece helped me learn to like the way I look a lot more, I think the experience has been really beneficial to my growth as a person.
The frustrations and problems I worked through during this series will affect the rest of my life. I was very excited to try glass cyanotypes, but I was very anxious I would fail. In the end I am very happy I chose to stay on track, and I continue to surprise myself with the successes I have and with how I overcome my failures. While this series articulates the pain, I have gone through during my transition, it also demonstrates the pains I felt during this process. The flaws from tilted coatings, dog hairs that absolutely refused to stay away, and the edges that I am still figuring out.
I am excited to continue this idea and technique, but I plan on changing a few things. I would like to try printing on acrylic instead, to hopefully minimize cracking and anxiety. I would also like to continue mastering this technique, so hopefully in the future the cyanotype will go all the way to the edge of the glass.
This series was created to explore and embrace the changes my body has made throughout its transition. My first big art series relating to my body was Body History, which really helped lay the foundation for all of my later work. Growing Panes, was created to mirror that project, but also explore the changes I have made in my life as a person and an artist. Small boxes were used to distort parts of my body that cause me dysphoria, and make it hard to live my life the way I want to. Dysphoria has been a huge driving force throughout my works and this piece helped me learn to like the way I look a lot more, I think the experience has been really beneficial to my growth as a person.
The frustrations and problems I worked through during this series will affect the rest of my life. I was very excited to try glass cyanotypes, but I was very anxious I would fail. In the end I am very happy I chose to stay on track, and I continue to surprise myself with the successes I have and with how I overcome my failures. While this series articulates the pain, I have gone through during my transition, it also demonstrates the pains I felt during this process. The flaws from tilted coatings, dog hairs that absolutely refused to stay away, and the edges that I am still figuring out.
I am excited to continue this idea and technique, but I plan on changing a few things. I would like to try printing on acrylic instead, to hopefully minimize cracking and anxiety. I would also like to continue mastering this technique, so hopefully in the future the cyanotype will go all the way to the edge of the glass.