Reflection
Fashion is not only an expression of your own personality but also can be an expression of your ideal self. In the film, transgender people hold balls and turn themselves into stars, supermodels, white people, and real women. The standard of beauty or fashion varies from person to person but the mainstream is a relatively fixed notion. As a niche group like gay and transgender, they are pursuing beauty and identity while also pursuing the white, heterosexual mainstream. The high-end luxury goods are such a symbol, their target customers are the mainstream people, and their high prices also make their products become a symbol of wealth. Maybe that’s the reason why some individuals shown in the documentary live in poverty, sew their own ‘designer’ clothes, or resort to shoplifting: they seek fashion, but also pursue higher social classes. The ability to buy and wear fashionable luxury items allows them to escape from the reality of being a niche group banished by their families and become the mainstream of attention. At the same time, the existence of the houses community allows them to be understood and tolerated, and to accept their gay identity more openly. But they are still conflicted, they have a hard time wearing their favorite clothes and facing the public openly, and they have a long way to go in spreading vogue dancing to the world.
Mask
The surface decoration of our mask is inspired by the scales of the pangolin. We wanted to express the current situation where people tend to hide their true selves and protect themselves with armor. The yellow part on the left side of the mask symbolizes the Broca area, which is damaged when people can understand the language but cannot express it properly. We highlight this area in the hope of reaching a metaphor: people are so ashamed to show themselves as if they do not have the ability to do so. The various shapes of clay bubbles on the top of the head are different parts of people’s true selves, such as narcissism, acrimony, and other emotions. They are all real, and they show up underneath the mask.
We cut and extended the existing mask to fit the head shape, allowing it to cover part of the top of the head, allowing us to mark the Broca area (at least in close proximity)
Initially the mood bubble we were hoping to complete with nano-glue, but we followed the tutorial after many attempts or failed to blow a successful bubble. As the materials ran out we had to give up. The current expression of the mood bubble is a bit ugly, perhaps it would be better to replace it with a small balloon or a clear plastic ball later.
