Statement
Scopaesthesia - Heels and Hair Rollers, resonates quite strongly with my interests and methods of mirroring and observing. In this series, I am both the photographer and the character in frame, enabling me to mirror my commentary and critique on this subject through my photography. I aimed to create in some of my images that very rigid posture and articulated, considered body language. This element is to demonstrate the process of this young woman moving through this performative routine until she achieves this image and ideal, but it’s perhaps so exhaustive that it becomes emotionless and quite detached, much like her dissociated perception of herself. These photographs interweave elements of portraiture and still life to create works haunted by the events that preceded their taking. I wanted these images to encourage the audience consider and visualise (narratively speaking), what events took place prior to these moments being captured. This woman is looking at herself this way, coded by the male gaze and fed through social media, movies, and potentially relatives of older generations. In this series, she’s performing for the male gaze even when nobody is watching. She’s creating this perception of herself, watching herself perform for the male gaze before she even leaves her house. In her eyes, if she hasn’t engaged in this performative role, she hasn’t succeeded in the ideals and expectations of the identity of a woman under the male gaze. She struggles with this, and it scares her.
Emmason Tucker is a graduating media and communications student, majoring in photography and screen production at Edith Cowan University. Emmason’s work and creative style is inspired by contemporary photographers Cindy Sherman, Sarah Jones, and Marge Monko. In her photography journey, Emmason has found a place in visually articulating her commentary and critique regarding post-modernism, feminism, the “male gaze”, adolescence, and psychoanalysis. She collaborates with primarily female and non-binary identifying models and loved ones within the queer community, in a respective journey of her own gender, sexuality, and representation. Emmason has grown as a photographer for five years, working in functions such as birthdays, festivals, concerts, and recitals outside of her contemporary, portrait and landscape work. Additionally, Emmason studies screen production which encourages an intertwining filmic perspective regarding cinematography and narratives within her photography work. Emmason’s photography offers a critical approach of the representation of women in media, questioning gender norms, binaries, and expectations through a lens of feminist art. Her work questions the objectification of women by the male gaze and the construction of the female gender. Emmason has an interest in the notion of mirroring, photographically and psychoanalytically speaking, positions the camera as an onlooker or third eye in attempts to provoke considerations of the act of viewing on behalf of both the photographer and the viewer. Emmason’s work takes reference from feminist theorist of Judith Butler who discusses performativity regarding gender, commenting on young women’s’ performative routines in order to meet the ideals of the female identity sculptured by the male gaze. She enjoys interweaving elements of portraiture and still life to create works shadowed by the events that preceded their taking; this is to encourage the audience to consider and visualise (narratively speaking), what events occurred prior to these moments being captured.