photomontage

My photo montage consists of photos taken while applying make up for a drag performance, self portraits as my drag persona, and the process of removing the make up at the end of the night.  Drag makeup is much different than what the average person wears for daily use, it’s more closely related to stage makeup; Transformative, ostentatious, and theatrical. The process of putting on drag make up completely alters my appearance and takes several hours. This allowed me the opportunity to take a series of photos to document the step-by-step process of transformation.

Beyond the visual transformation, drag has significance in the personal, and within the community.  Drag performers all have unique experiences and definitions of what drag “is”, but I've found that there’s a very vague definition most people can agree on: Drag is gender as performance. That’s it. This definition resonates with me more than definitions that include “illusion” or “cross dressing”, because all gender(roles) are performative and socially constructed, thus open to anyone's interpretation.  Drag provides an outlet for me as an artist to explore gender and gender roles,  and what those mean within myself. Probably the most important thing that drag provides is a community space for LGBT people, drag has a long tradition within the community.

This piece explores gender, as well as the concept of a drag persona or an alter ego.