Smithsonian magazine's 22nd Annual Photo Contest | Made possible through the support of MPB.com

20th Annual Smithsonian Magazine Photo Contest Artistic
The Patron Saint Against Unwanted Advances

The series Everybody Else's Girl explores the boundaries of social norms, our relationships with one another, and the characters we play in our daily lives through a non-binary, lesbian lens. The perception of self in the grander cultural scheme affects each of us. The legacy of the clown, the jester, and the mime are metaphors for gender performance and the constant desire for validation, attention, and applause. This piece is in conversation with queer historical modes of self-expression, such as drag and theater. These characters represent our own identities, reflected back to us in the fun-house mirror of archetypes and tropes in popular media. What role did your family and your society impose on you, and did you fulfill it? What characters did you envy or idolize? Does the idol-worship of pop culture create these masks that we wear? How can we escape? Is there something euphoric to breaking all the boundaries, or falling fully into character? What role are you playing in the greatest show on earth?

Photo Detail
Date Taken: 01.2022
Date Uploaded: 11.2022
Photo Location: Gilbert, Arizona, United States of America
Camera: Canon EOS REBEL T5
Copyright: © Chloe Koebel