Asian Homosexual at Liberal Arts College
As an international student at an American college and also a queer person of color at a predominantly white institution, I have always felt that I do not belong—physically, emotionally, and even spiritually—at Hamilton. After all, the school’s founders did not create it for people who look like me. I used to feel self-conscious and even anxious in spaces where I am especially visible to many other students, like the dining hall or Martin’s way. As I spent more time at Hamilton and became more conscious of my place on the margin, I found ways to carve out spaces for my own and grew more comfortable occupying and moving around the campus. That is not to say, however, that I now experience a sense of complete belonging at school as feelings of self-consciousness resurfaces from time to time. I will forever remember the sense of alienation that I felt my freshman year. Thus, as an expression of me growing more at ease at Hamilton, my project aims to reclaim the space at the college and grapple symbolically with the institution’s predominantly white history and status.
Donning a flower crown on my head and wrapping a swath of hot pink fabric around my body like a cape, I seek to render myself regal when taking self-portraits at various locations on campus, which include the dining hall, the lounge where portraits of Hamilton’s past presidents are hung, etc.
For this project, artists who influenced me include Carrie Mae Weems, Mariko Mori, and Yasumasa Morimura. The works of these artists serve doubly as photograph and performance. They deal with pertinent issues like race, class, gender, sexuality, identity, and performance.
All photos were taken by me with the help of my camera's self timer.
