I am fascinated by the culture of overproduction, consumption, and the objectification of bodies in the media. Whether serving as a tool or a weapon, these images—present or absent—have profoundly shaped my life and the lives of those around me.
I collect, dissect, and resignify historical and contemporary symbols in search of what has been lost or harmed within myself and our world. Using fragments and layers, I evoke the impossibility of representing the self within pre-established prescriptions. My work interrogates the body as the primary territory of systemic control—a site marked by fragmentation and mutilation.
Through collage, installation, and photo-based techniques, I reimagine a new social body unbound by institutions, gender, or ideology. I explore the enigma of the female and its darkness, delving into the deepest, most obscured aspects of our nature.
My narrative stands as a testament to societal predicaments that defy conformity. I am queer, brown, Latinx, immigrant, and a mother in a multiethnic, non-monogamous household—a survivor freed from a family that was never a haven of love or safety, who fled poverty in the third world and endured separation from my daughter due to immigration laws. My work is a memento mori—a rescue poem for those sacrificed to the consumption of others and the male gaze.
- Katy Beltran.