0-3082

I am interested in how society identifies “criminality”, and how this perception shifts as
society evolves. This series of mixed media paintings focuses on “Prostitutes”: women
whose jobs were seduction, while simultaneously enduring dubious fates fraught with
uncertainty and danger. Black, pulverized charcoal and glittery, mica flake compose
these paintings, which are based upon SFPD mug shots of women who were arrested for
prostitution in the 1940s. The juxtaposition of the black, gritty charcoal against the
shimmery mica flake draws parallels to the dualities of seduction and ruggedness inherent
in the lives of these subjects. Working with these photos of female “criminals”, many of
who had clearly been victims of physical assault themselves, also began conjuring
questions about situations in which the perceived “criminal” may also, in fact, be the
“victim”.