Semester Project

For my semester project, I would like to examine the relationship between gender identity and religion - between myself as a female and Catholicism. I intend to address the stage between puberty and adulthood and the confusion relating to sexual awakening and adherence (or lack thereof) to Catholic doctrine, especially concerning the Virgin Mary as the archetypal role model for women. I want to avoid imagery which would come off as blatantly blasphemous, as it is not necessarily my intention to criticize the church but to address my own struggle (and the struggle many young women in a similar position have faced/are facing). This will likely involve a fair amount of self-portraiture, though I will undoubtedly be using other people as well. I want to pay attention to the use of color; blue, for example, which represents the Virgin. I will try not to rely to heavily on religious icons to represent my idea, in hopes that the imagery itself will successfully convey the meaning.