Can art change the world?
When I began my portrait series in March I have to be honest - I wasn’t entirely sure what the effects would be! I was aware that detransitioners who were speaking up were being silenced and many are terrified to even share their experiences (fortunately this is changing!). I also believe it’s vital for everyone to understand their experiences and cut through all the biased reporting and skewed statistics and research to hear directly from people who’ve been through medical transition. I also knew I had to do something BIG to get noticed, and I realise 100 portraits is a lot - that’s the point!
I’ve always wondered if art can change the world - or does it just fleetingly pass in front of a viewer’s eyes possible gaining a quick ‘like’. By connecting my portraits with stories and words directly from detransitioned women/females I hope they will have even more impact than just garnering a quick click - you can look into each person’s eyes, perhaps feeling some connection to their humanity.
So can art change the world? Perhaps step by step. So far …
The fantastically brave participants have felt moved by being chosen and elevated - being included has created a sense of validation and says YOU MATTER! Because they do as do their experiences! Contact me to be included in the series
Older lesbians (many of the women I’m painting are lesbians) have thanked me for raising awareness of the connections between homosexuality and transitioning.
Almost every woman I’ve spoken to has said ‘that could’ve been me’ they would’ve been tempted to adopt a new gender identity and possibly transition. Being a woman is so difficult in many ways (even I chose a boy name when at school 30 years ago, I’m still learning to fully embrace and love womanhood) and as teenagers we would’ve tried to escape. Many of us cannot fully understand the power of social media and peer pressure but on some level we get it. And we are failing young people today by not providing proper mental health support for gender questioning youth both before and after transition.
I am currently on portrait 25 (I will on occasion share previous portraits if they link with current ones)
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