Displaying my body enveloped in nylon confronts the negotiation between the act of being concealed and revealed, stretched and suppressed. The series references Senga Nengudi’s R.S.V.P. (1976) sculptures, which use nylon to symbolize the elasticity, strain, and resilience of the Black female body. As a Black woman entering my thirties, I am hyperaware of how I’m perceived but releasing the insecurities and overthinking that lead to shrinking parts of my identity. Sharing testimony is a spiritual act of courage: a ritual to name struggle, transformation, and resilience. With my bedroom as the central stage, I use an intimate space to reveal the tension between exposure and concealment. Recognizing my ability to approach visibility and embodiment and relating it to my own internal reflections, I construct a photo series through a deeply personal mode of inquiry, leading to newfound creative fearlessness and expression.
