I tried

I tried is an installation utilizing photography, crafted dresses from pig intestines, sound, and space as a response to conflicting behavioral expectations a woman endures for her desire for acceptance and approval. With the aid of a sewing machine and other sewing techniques, I will create gowns to perfectly fit the contours of my form with the aid of my bodily measurements, dress size patterns, and a dress former. The fabric will be pig intestines that are prepared through sewing them together to form large sheets to be used in the construction of the dresses. The natural transparency of the dresses allow for my body to be exposed to my audience allowing my authentic self to show through to my audience. The purpose of the dress is to act as a metaphor for the constraining expectations a woman experiences through Mid- Western cultural values. Each dress was intended for a different public space associated with a woman or a woman’s work. I am documented while I pose in the dress making eye contact with my viewer. Tension is cultivated through my direct gaze and expression combined with the vulnerability of my naked body in the public environment. I come through the dress towards the viewer, creating a sense of discomfort relating directly to the depth of my agitation towards the imposed constraints placed on me through society, community, and family. The responsive tearing of the dress is representational of the lack of cultural adaptability where a woman becomes falsely implicated in unacceptable behavioral violations due to her pursuit of selfidentity. The goal of I tried is to create a space for acceptance and grace for the enduring efforts of pushing through cultural restraints.M. A