Untitled (Noses)

Art Installation / Interactive

This piece holds particular significance on a personal level as its inspiration stemmed from a close friend's personal condition. She was diagnosed with bipolar during her second year of university; the ordeal as described by her has been a long tiresome struggle. She describes it as a constant session of putting herself down resulting in extreme insecurity about her appearance and actions. The disorder has caused her to have great anxiety in social situations placing her in tremendous fear and angst of being constantly judged. Untitled (Noses) is my expression of empathy towards the feeling of being insecure; it is meant to support her by telling her she is not alone and people are empathetic, kind and also go through their own burdens. I wanted to create a piece that simultaneously critiques the standard of beauty while accentuating the beauty in being unique. Untitled (Noses) is an interactive work that allows audiences to pick up and try on moulded noses. The ability to temporarily alter one's appearance was meant to work as a parody of plastic surgery. I invited viewers to try on different noses as a way to represent the unique qualities of each person. I wanted to show that despite subtle differences in each person, we all share a common trait of being human.