Moments of Truth

creative contribution

anonymous

artist statement

Moments of Truth is a series of five photographs that are about my experiences being outed as a Korean American queer nonbinary person, especially in a conservative and religious household. In Korean society, where conservative and traditional attitudes dominate the people, discrimination and prejudice is prevalent against LGBTQ+ people and communities. Queerness is seen as taboo, with any discussion being kept silent and discouraged—even being censored. Moments of Truth touches upon these realities, specifically my struggles between expressing myself and maintaining my relationships to my family—as well as the explosive conflicts that occurred when I was outed. The titles of the individual photographs are taken from the verbal exchanges between family members and me (“Please don’t tell them,” “It does not get better,” “Forgive me,” and so on). The interaction between myself and the clothes (that act as stand-ins for my family) represents the power dynamics between us. With this internal conflict between my kin and myself, the colors of these photographs are muted and reference the color of my flesh. The implied nudity and blurred, frenzied motion throughout the series evoke the vulnerability and desperation I felt in begging my kin to accept me. These photographs serve to depict and reveal moments of power, loss, secrecy, and agency in the domestic and psychological spheres of the Korean American household as a queer person.

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