Gel transfer, tobacco, rose, tape, and glue 2018
Gel transfer, tobacco, rose, tape, and glue 2018
Shed Skin is an intimate exploration of personal history and transformation, utilizing fifteen years of unedited journal entries to create a life-sized cast of their body. The journal entries, transferred onto gel medium, document years of self-reflection and inner struggle. To bring these private thoughts into physical form, Rose soaked the gel sheets in wine and tobacco—symbols of two habits that have persistently influenced their life. This infusion of personal vices adds a layer of vulnerability to the work, merging the mental and emotional with the physical.
The process of gluing the sheets onto their body in a six-hour transformation mirrors the act of shedding, a symbolic release of past selves and burdens. By removing the form from their body, Rose enacts a cathartic moment of change, hinting at renewal and growth. As a gender fluid artist, this work carries an added significance, engaging with themes of fluid identity and the continual evolution of self. The use of journal entries—personal, raw, and unfiltered—serves as both a literal and figurative shedding of layers, revealing the complex interplay between one's past and the potential for transformation.
