A Complex Definition of a Body
A Complex Definition of a Body
Anna Mikuskova, Beate Sass, Brenda Spielmann, Eliza Bell, Frances Bukovsky, Kaoly Gutierrez
Where do our bodies end and other bodies begin? How does our understanding of the edges of our being influence us? For six weeks, participants of A Complex Definition of a Body met and worked in a diverse range of photographic techniques to play with the complexity of defining what a body is.
Origins
Where do we come from? What bodies have made our own bodies? What stories do we tell about origins? What stories do our bodies tell?
Edges
Where are the edges of my body? Where does my body end and another body begin? Where are the edges of my “self” and my body? How do other bodies influence my body, or my “self?” What bodies contribute to my own body? How I contribute to other bodies?
Connection
How do I connect to others? To myself? What senses do those connections use? What hidden connections between bodies are present? How can photography connect two (or more) bodies?
Embodiment
What does being a body feel like? What moments allow me to be truly connected with my sense of body? What ideas or concepts do I embody, do others embody? How can I sense the embodiment of other beings? How does a story become embodied? What can a photograph embody? How can photographs become a body?
Definition
How can I imagine a new definition of a body, create a new origin story, play with malleable edges and explore new connections, dive into the sensorial experience of embodiment? What happens when I make images from a recognition of the relationships between, between the bodies that came before me, the bodies that muddy the idea of self and other, the bodies that sustain my own, the bodies that remind me how to be a body?
Anna Mikušková grew up in the Czech Republic and is currently based in Alaska. She received an MA in English language (Masaryk University) and an MFA in Photography and Related Media (RIT). Her photographs have been exhibited nationally and internationally including the Anchorage Museum and The Art Gallery of the University of New England. Her work frequently turns to themes of home, belonging, and the intimate relationships we form with the environments we inhabit.
Beate Sass is a photo-based artist whose imagery is inspired by the Southwest region where she grew up. Beate is not only drawn to capture the essence and beauty of her subjects but to also utilize her knowledge of visual storytelling to highlight and amplify the voices of those who are often overlooked.
Brenda Spielmann, a Brazilian-born artist based in Canada, uses photography, storytelling, and photo-intervention such as embroidery to explore notions of normalcy and human diversity. Brenda's aim is to celebrate diversity in meaningful ways, fostering a culture of intentional understanding.
Eliza Bell is a documentary wedding + family photographer in Asheville, NC. She is genuinely smitten with this work, and essentially just wants people to feel seen. Currently, she is working on a project attempting to expand the story of maternity portraits, as well as a collaborative project combining photos and poems.
Frances Bukovsky makes images about the relationships between bodies, places, and identities in the context of chronic illness, disability, and queerness. They apply interdisciplinary research to self portraiture, documentary photography, and alternative processes to tie the intimate to the systemic.
Kaoly Gutierrez, a Mexican documentary and portrait photographer based in Asheville, North Carolina, captures the delicate interplay between life's tenderness and ruggedness in her work. Through her lens, she explores the intricate connections among individuals, communities, and cultures, revealing the universal intimacy found in every individual's life, including her own. Central to her artistic philosophy is the belief that photography serves as a vessel for empathy and understanding. She sees photography as a means of fostering compassion for herself, others, and the world.
