Marie&Bolette+Paulina

In what way can photography be used to explore the body as both the object and the subject, as gender identity and as stereotypes?  This series is rooted in the private photographs made by the women's rights activists and photographers Marie Høeg (1866-1949) and Bolette Berg (1872-1944). In a commission by The National Museum of Photography in Norway, I was asked to reimagine these private images. The result of my research is a staged photomontage, challenging the rigid frame of the photographic structure. The one thing these photographers had in common is that they all used performance as a way of working with images. ‍

The concept of ‘the other’ is fundamental for humanity, in order for each of us to understand our relation to the outside world. Many queer, lesbian, gay and transgender people have experienced being seen and treated as ‘others’. In this series, I invite the queer community in Norway to perform in front of my camera; the studio, in the process, becomes a safe space where new representations of gender and orientation can emerge. Our brain loves patterns and similarities, and this is how we analyse the world around us. Being the other is not always a bad thing – some of us like to stand out, and can proudly claim the ‘other’ label. The project offers an opportunity for colourful dialogue in relation to gender issues, cultural identity and the relevance of art in social change. ‍

Taking inspiration from Jemima Stehli´s photographic series, Strip, my project reworks the same concept through a queer lens. It sets out to question what differences exist between the gazes – is the gaze there to relate, or does it only objectify? Rather than focusing on the male gaze, this photographic experiment is about female reactions to a queer woman stripping. It´s an experimental study of the femme gaze, and how we look at each other. The sitter has total control over the image making process, wielding a remote control whilst the artist undresses in her studio. How would you look, if you were allowed to look, whilst knowing you were being looked at? Can one trust your own gaze?