"WITHOUT MY GENES OR MY BLOOD"

In this series, I use constructed flower amalgams to question the gender binary. Many flowers have both male and female reproductive parts. The flower amalgams, sometimes using scientific terms used for specific reproductive parts, proclaim who they are in terms of gender.

The use of scientific terms and a style mimicking that of botanical photography (specifically the style of Karl Blossfeldt) questions the validity of the "scientific" or "biological" separation of men and women into a strict binary. Are men and women so different from each other?

The construction of these amalgams acted as a physical manifestation of identity construction. The delicate nature of flowers makes them a difficult material to work with, but this difficulty mirrors my own experiences of constructing my non-binary identity over the years.

The title “Without my genes or my blood” is a lyric taken from the song ‘Immaterial’ by the transgender musician SOPHIE, relating the work back to human beings and furthering the exploration of an immaterial identity separate from your body.