Queeration

Artist's Statement: I chose a lookbook for a proposed miniseries that follows the transformations/births of various monsters for my final project. It is intended to convey the queer potential of monsters when viewed through the lens of creation. I focus on the monsters—or monstersized characters—in Frankenstein by Mary Shelly, The Rocky Horror Picture Show, Ex Machina, Carrie, Ginger Snaps, and Us. The lookbook format best demonstrates my research as it positions multiple monsters in the context of becoming—and highlights the various ways this can occur, with no one type of creation being privileged. I chose this format because if I were to create a piece that depicts creation, it would consist of multiple stories. So, I created a lookbook for a proposed miniseries that explores various experiences of birth, identity, life, and death—queering the creation story of Genesis.

This concept connects to what we have covered in class as it is focused on the reframing of sacred stories. As Wilcox explores in Queer Religiosities, many queer people use reframing as a tool to expand sacred stories—reframing them in a way that reflects their personal experience and identity. Viewing characters from horror films through a lens of divine creation can foster a safe space for queer people to explore their sense of belonging and negotiate their relationship with identity, religion, and hegemonic society. Framing this project as a lookbook will help me extend this project beyond the classroom because I can use either the whole slide deck or specific characters to help me teach my final lesson for the class I TA for!