halved.

14"x17"

Utilizing oceanic symbolism plays a major role in my work. The visual evidence in this piece features a halved oyster shell transposed over a side portrait, subtly evoking the slippery and supple female form. Prying open the briny oyster to eat reminds us of the oral and consumptive relationship between the woman and something as utilitarian as food, and as vulnerable as a fishes silken belly. "Halving" describes the sexualized violence projected onto the anatomy and social perception of a mermaid. How does the mermaid construct her dichotomized ideas of self while the irridescent hues of her inner shell rapidly shift and deflect? Meanwhile, she undergoes a Promethean process of dissection and reconstruction. If the female identity incessantly competes with the male gaze, then how does she take ownership over her sexuality as it is simultaneously weaponized against her?