Techniques of the Liar

I work on film sets as a behind-the-scenes photographer and special effects makeup artist. I use photography to look at the management of women's bodies on set, and the simulation of violence against them.

I work on film sets as a behind-the-scenes photographer and special effects makeup artist, specializing in blood, wounds, and bruising. I use photography to look at the social architecture of the set, its layers of reality, and how it informs a prescribes way of moving and being. In particular, I focus on the management of women's bodies and how they are made to be spectacular.

I predominantly work on horror film sets, where I apply makeup to women to both simulate their death and make them appear glamorous. This work is about the implicit violence inflicted upon their bodies, and the patriarchal desire to watch their death and disappearance. I use my camera to render everyone a main character, whether cast or crew, to document these fantasies and highlight the construction of decadence and decay.

This work is influences by my relationship with my quadriplegic mother. I go to these cinematic spaces because they are imbued with directorial control, power struggles, and attention to gesture. These factors are familiar to my upbringing, as I watched my mother slowly metamorphose into decerebrate rigidity and negotiate autonomy. I look at cinematic performance as a metaphor to these childhood memories, as I observe external forces marionette bodies towards catastrophe.

I hope to use this grant to cover travel and stay in Los Angeles, where I can continue working on a greater number and variety of film sets to tell the story I need to share.