“You painted a naked woman because you enjoyed looking at her, put a mirror in her hand and you called the 2666 ‘Vanity,’ thus morally condemning the woman whose nakedness you had depicted for your own pleasure.”
— John Berger

This quote captures the contradiction at the heart of my work. It speaks to the history of how women have been objectified and judged for their appearance, especially when they acknowledge or own it. The moment a woman looks at herself—or is seen looking—she risks being labelled as vain. Her beauty becomes diminished by the suggestion that she is aware of it.

At the heart of my practice is perception. I’ve always loved the way viewers engage with a piece—how they interpret it and bring their experiences into its meaning. This dialogue between artwork and observer is, to me, one of the most beautiful elements of art: two people can look at the same piece and come away with different understandings, shaped by background, emotion, and intuition.

While my work carries meaning, I value the interpretations others bring to it. This is where mirrors become essential—not just as materials, but as conceptual tools. They allow the viewer to insert themselves into the artwork, blurring the line between subject and object. Each person sees something different, not only in their reflection but in the meaning they extract. It becomes an evolving piece—never seen the same way twice. It belongs to each viewer uniquely.

This project also speaks to the expectations placed on women to meet unrealistic beauty ideals while being shamed for engaging too closely with them. Beauty is encouraged, but vanity is punished—especially when a woman appears aware of her own image. As Berger’s quote reveals, the mirror becomes a tool of judgment in a woman’s hands.  But in my work, I aim to reclaim it. I use mirrors not to condemn, but to empower—to allow space for reflection that is personal, complex, and unapologetically owned by the viewer themselves. So with this, my work invites you to indulge in its vanity, bask in it and reclaim your image as your own.