Paper Dolls

Paper Dolls “We have no built-in sense of identity, but rather compose ourselves from pieces of popular culture.” –Sporre Self perception is one of the most difficult issues we have to deal with in our life time. From the time a little girl picks up her first doll, wears her first dress, or has her ears pierced she is being influenced by a social standard of femininity. In time we all develop a self concept; partly from outward influences and partly from introspection. Paper Dolls is an exploration into how outward influence, particularly the media, effect women. The silhouettes are images of women from a variety of ages, cultures, and socio-economic backgrounds. I have them pose like the childhood toy paper dolls. The paper dolls speak to the early influences much like the images of Barbie. They conform to an absurd and unrealistic standard of beauty by which many women measure themselves. The magazine covers and additional text address the, often times, nonsensical redundancy of the media in attempting to present solutions for issues surrounding self-acceptance, love and relationships, and external appearance. Magazine Collage on paper on Panel; Gloss Enamel