To Be Seen (2025)

To Be Seen is a photo installation of 47 sequential self-portrait images exploring the tension between the desire for connection and the erosion of self that often follows. Projected words “To be loved,” “To be liked,” “To be adored,” “To exist,” “To build connection,” and “…” anchor the work in the language of validation, while the photographed gestures hugging, clawing, and choking visualize the emotional toll of striving to be understood. As the images progress, physical distortion through Photoshop and motion blur mirrors the breakdown of identity under pressure. The shift to shirtless, increasingly abstract portraits marks a stripping away of external identity, exposing raw vulnerability. Intimate in scale and cyclical in layout, the installation invites viewers to step in close, reflecting how self-worth and connection are deeply entangled and constantly shifting.