Untitled 8 (It Took Forever)
by Brooks Eisenbise
$400
This piece was one in a series exploring (my) performative gender identity in adolescence, and how the trappings of the false self can leak into every part of our social and emotional life. In the bottom right hand corner of the piece is written in red ink, “I PREFER RED ROSES.” This gestures to a memory I have of voicing my preference for red roses after being given pink roses following a ballet recital when I was very young. I was scolded viciously for this, and still think of it often when I wonder why I have trouble voicing my desires. The Tumblr posts in the background of the composition, written by my high school self, embody the overwhelming desires that plagued me, which I only felt safe voicing anonymously online: to be noticed, to be special, to be beautiful, to be loved.