Generational Hauntings
As I age my grasp for identity has become increasingly relevant. With each tick off the checklist of “successful adult woman” I find it progressively more difficult to weave a singular self. The most significant challenge to my self-concept happened when I became a mother.
Society told me that being a mother would make me complete, I would finally find out who I was meant to be. Unfortunately I felt more unlike myself than I ever had. The past me could not co-exist with the mother that I needed to be, but I was not ready nor willing to let that person go. It is the evolution of self that I explore in my photographic work.
While my present existence as a mother is key to my perception of my identity I find the voices of the past to be equally significant. I envelop myself daily with objects from my personal history and I find them to be essential components to this pursuit of self. Bringing the voice of my past to the forefront allows me to explore the idea of nature vs. nurture and can give me clues of what may be to come.
I utilize family portraits, self-portraits, and constructed realities to explore my own sense of identity. Each image has a sense of revelation with its own set of peculiarities. While this is my own personal quest I find that many of the images take on a completely different role for the viewer. The idea that the personal experience of the viewer will change the perception of my image is stimulating to me as the artist. It brings the idea of who we are and the personal contstruction of “self” back full circle.
Matel Rokke
2016
As I age my grasp for identity has become increasingly relevant. With each tick off the checklist of “successful adult woman” I find it progressively more difficult to weave a singular self. The most significant challenge to my self-concept happened when I became a mother.
Society told me that being a mother would make me complete, I would finally find out who I was meant to be. Unfortunately I felt more unlike myself than I ever had. The past me could not co-exist with the mother that I needed to be, but I was not ready nor willing to let that person go. It is the evolution of self that I explore in my photographic work.
While my present existence as a mother is key to my perception of my identity I find the voices of the past to be equally significant. I envelop myself daily with objects from my personal history and I find them to be essential components to this pursuit of self. Bringing the voice of my past to the forefront allows me to explore the idea of nature vs. nurture and can give me clues of what may be to come.
I utilize family portraits, self-portraits, and constructed realities to explore my own sense of identity. Each image has a sense of revelation with its own set of peculiarities. While this is my own personal quest I find that many of the images take on a completely different role for the viewer. The idea that the personal experience of the viewer will change the perception of my image is stimulating to me as the artist. It brings the idea of who we are and the personal contstruction of “self” back full circle.
Matel Rokke
2016
