Liquid Specimen "essence"

This image form part of a body of work entitled Liquid Specimen. I discovered (and am still discovering) that this body of work lends itself to many layers of interpretation. The ‘glass box’, through which we are viewing these women represents the container where ‘specimens’ of femininity are being expressed, captured and seemingly being preserved in water.

The ‘glass box’ also represents the body, and the women inside display aspects of the inner feminine, anima or soul. By observing the struggle, awkwardness and sometimes discomfort of the women in this confined space I have been learning more about the discomfort and restrictiveness of being trapped in our bodies and the ideas of what our bodies should be, look like represented as etc. But I have also noticed during the process of making these photographs that sometimes there is a sense of acceptance of the discomfort, a serenity and perhaps an opportunity for transformation.

The water is symbolic of feeling and emotion. Water also has a cleansing effect, and I have observed and experienced how cathartic this process has been both for the women being photographed and for myself as the artist.

I was inspired to start this project during a collaborative work entitled Silk Worm that I have been working on with illustrator Alexia Cocolas.

Model: Alexia Cocolas