I Live in Your Body and I Will Always Love You explores

the connections of past selves through the lens of family ties.

Due to feeling disconnected from my younger self, the use of

alternative photography, taxidermy, and installation within this body of work closes the gap by preserving the ever-changing memories of childhood.

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Taxidermy provokes the viewer to question at what point

acts of love become acts of brutality. There is an imperfect

quality to taxidermy. The exposed childhood photos on turkey

feathers contrasts the harsh process of puncturing and

stretching animal hides to be sewn together. The delicate

process of bottling memories into wet specimens emphasizes the passage of time. Preserved specimens will inevitably begin to deteriorate, and with it the memories that were preserved. This deterioration mimics how my perception of self changes each time the memories are revisited.

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Memories are reconstructions of the mind and thus, they are

constantly shifting. I grasp to stabilize these recollections as

they change, which fuels my desire to preserve them. Growing up with a father who is an avid hunter, I have come to view taxidermy as a metaphor. And thus, memory and sentimental value are not mere trophies. Using taxidermy as my instrument, I allow buried memories to resurface and I claw at the ones that are fading. It is by the process of preservation that the memories give the appearance of becoming stagnant. Taxidermy is used to underline the need to preserve my memories before I lose them or they are changed in time. Much like a taxidermy mount, my past selves are gone, leaving only the evidence of a body and the coexisting memories we share. She lives on in me and I in her, and I will always love her.