Building a body/image

In ‘building a body/image’, I shoot Janine, a female bodybuilder, a mannequin and handmade ceramic objects to see how they all interact in the studio environment. The studio becomes a space where images are created and manufactured, similar to how body image ideals are manufactured in society. However the agency lies in our hands, to see and be seen as equals and as bodies understanding its place in the environment.   I believe the apparatus of looking, framing, stands and backdrops, reduces the distance created between the spectator and the image, forcing them to question the construct of body image and image making.  The images force us to view the body as a material, going beyond gender, representation and beauty ideals, into a real of landscape and sculpture.
After capturing these images, I experimented with them in various ways. I printed them on organza, silk and nylon lycra. I made a double image and installed it on backdrop stands, and created a sculpture out of the nylon lycra print. I'm interested in the journey an  image can take from the eye to the camera to the darkroom to printed textiles and into a three dimensional art object that can be experienced (and back into an image).