Mackenzie Tatananni
The presence of flowers and related imagery throughout my work serves a greater purpose than just to beautify it. Flowers themselves do not feel a sense of obligation to beautify the world. They are here to survive just as we are, to be left to their own devices, and yet we must reduce them to an symbol of desire and purity and anything but what they truly are. Similarly, our culture objectifies the female form to the point where young women are confused about their own identity. Is it empowering to be seen as a sexual object, something to be desired? Through my work I strive to demonstrate that flesh and petals have more in common than it may seem. All organisms share the same wish, which is to survive, whether they grow from the earth or tread upon it.