In Western society many of our oldest cultural traditions are framed in terms of myth, legend, and a heroic narrative. Historically this narrative has been reserved for the social and economic elite, but here these mythological and literary tropes are being appropriated to describe the experience of being not only a warrior, but also a transsexual woman. The sculptures will be constructed using forged and cast metals (a medium with heavily masculine cultural connotations) and will seek to undermine and subvert the cultural, military, and religious imagery of the historically monolithic patriarchy. This will be done via a series of figural representations of the nude body in transformative moments that blur the lines between gender and species, as well as representations of the transsexual nude. Additionally there will be pieces representing weapons, armor, and other objects that will serve a metaphorical purpose—objects that are typically associated with masculine warrior culture will be subverted and visually feminized. This will address not only the act of transition (from male to female) as a constant battle between body and mind; the individual and society, but also serves to examine the donning of cross-gendered clothing as an act of war: makeup becomes war paint and feminine clothing becomes armor.
