Confronting Masculinity through Adornment

Abstract

Challenging notions of masculinity, my research and artistic practice deconstruct adornment to a state of tension between the body and identity. Through intense confrontations of materials, process, and techniques, I encounter familiar aspects of wearability and perforative physicality while exploiting the vulnerability of the body. Investigating contemporary codes of dress, art historical references, and visual culture, my explorations construct portraiture within a contemporary context of adorning the physicality and sexuality of this macho mentality. By confronting these sensitivities, gestures, and forms, my studio practice and research conflate an intimate and revealing look at the construction of masculine personality and body relationships.