ALIAS

Breach of realms establishes a direct link to the work “Let's Take Back Our Space - ‘female’ and ‘male’ body language as a consequence of patriarchal power relations” by Marianne Wex. Building on her feminist analysis from the 1970s, I develop contemporary counter-designs to the unequally distributed occupation of (public) space even today. Wex's work is based on the observation of body language in public contexts and examines how male and female bodies function as expressions of power and subordination. She examines these attitudes not as biologically determined, but as the product of social norms and cultural expectations. These “gendered” postures and movements are not simply a natural phenomenon, but the result of patriarchal structures that normalize certain behaviours as “feminine” or “masculine”. In direct reference to Wex's tableaux, the protagonists in breach of realms intentionally adopt bodily postures and occupy spaces that subvert the prescribed frameworks. By shifting and blurring the boundaries of physicality, a visual deconstruction of hierarchical structures unfolds. Through the adoption and shedding of prescribed body choreographies, participants challenge the underlying structures that shape bodies, movements, and presence. Drawing on queer theory, Breach of Realms continues anti-patriarchal struggles as an intergenerational and ongoing endeavor. In doing so, it also highlights the referencing of existing frameworks as an active and formative practice.

(ongoing) echo examines relations between self-expression, attribution, and socio-cultural codes within self-portarits. Within a studio set of three synchronized cameras, distinct lines between operator, referent, and spectator dissolve. Roland Barthes' four imaginary dimensions interlink as a reflection of the cis-heterosexual matrix and gendered markers. As a trans body, I am continually navigating internalized as well as projected politics of the gaze. echo examines the role of photography in (de-)constructing traditional identity categories to develop pluralistic views of individual and collective identity. Since its invention in the 19th century, photography has played a significant role not only as a technical medium but also as a cultural tool in the construction and representation of identity. It serves not only to document individual existences but has historically also contributed to the consolidation of social hierarchies and power structures. In particular, portrait photography established tools for exclusionary practices and actively contributed to the construction of normative social frameworks. echo is works as a critical analysis of these cultural constructions and dynamics between self- and outside perception. Barthes describes the photographic portrait as a „closed field of forces“, in which four elements operate: the self-/desired image, the external image, and the craft. This interplay makes the portrait a complex and dynamic object, reflecting both the subject's identity as well as the perceptions of the photographer and viewers. echo shifts and expands this closed field of forces, examining the images as cultural signs.

Figure, Form is a self-determined counterpart to both artistic as well as social political discourses and understandings of "canon" and sees itself as an ongoing collection of queer/trans excellence and intelligence. Besides a practice of critical rejection, visibility and a formation of community are among the most important goals of the work. Figure, Form treats physicality as a sovereign medium dedicated to self-realization. No distribution for the development of social gender is ascribed to the body per se, gender identity is understood as a performative practice. Thus Figure, Form tests bodily (re)conquests, inscriptions into, and queering of prevailing narratives as a point of reference for future comprehension. The project aims to understand the body as a fluid material and works for un-doings / subversion of hegemonic gazes and a reclaiming of self, body and visibility. On show at Haus der Photographie, Deichtorhallen from 20.02.25 — 17.08.25