death and the maiden: part three

Death and the Maiden: Part 3

The creation of “Death and the Maiden” was an extremely personal experience. Because of this, I felt it was necessary that the final stage was to apply these rituals to myself. I dressed in the scraps of the buried gown, and held the pieces together by wrapping myself in the same golden twine as the skeleton. I continued to wind the thread around me until my limbs were securely bound. The thread cut into my skin, leaving my legs and arms deformed. Ironically, my hands and fingers were tied together in a prayerful state. I photographed these progressive stages of oppression until I was overcome by a new state of paralysis. The final photograph captures me as I look down at the skeleton, seeing my spiritual self bound. This human representation of my religious life was now in a grotesque, inhuman form.