Concept and Genesis
This project began with a question: how do art, language, and personal identity connect? I found inspiration in Empório Aragão’s Artist Collaboration Series, where wearable pieces became canvases. The idea that clothing could express identity really spoke to me, and I began to wonder how words themselves could be worn as statements of who we are.
The phrase “Don’t simplify me” came to mind first, pushing back against being reduced to a label. At first, I pictured it on a dress, but the idea soon felt too big for just clothing and needed a canvas instead. This led me to create a triptych, with each panel looking at identity and labeling in a new way.
The Three Phrases: Structure and Sequence
The triptych centers on three phrases:
- “I am not linear”
- “You don’t define me”
- “Don’t simplify me”
Each phrase became the starting point for a visual and conceptual experiment. In this post, I explain how these three phrases came together and what each one means.
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What if your brain autocorrects people?
We look at a person and immediately start constructing a story about them. A few details can become a whole identity. I started wondering what would happen if I made an artwork that challenged that instinct to understand someone too quickly. So, I wanted reading to become unreliable. I decided to make the viewer experience the problem rather than simply tell them about it.
Each phrase became the starting point for a visual and conceptual experiment. I chose their order methodically to guide the viewer’s experience, gradually increasing the cognitive challenge and mirroring the complexity of understanding identity.
- Piece I, “I am not linear,” is easy to read and welcomes the viewer. It uses typoglycemia, which is our brain’s ability to read scrambled words. This panel shows how we fill in gaps and make assumptions, much like how we quickly judge others.
- Piece II, “You don’t define me,” changes the reading direction and asks the viewer to engage more actively. By drawing on ideas from non-Western reading systems, this piece challenges cultural habits that try to fit identity into categories.
- Piece III, “Don’t simplify me,” is mirrored and can only be read by looking at a reflection. This makes the viewer change their perspective, both physically and mentally, showing how much effort it takes to really understand someone else’s identity.
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A System of Limits
Once I had the concept and the three phrases were set, I set some limits for myself: I chose a small color palette (deep blue, warm white, and electric green), a vertical format, and the use of Vyaz, an old Slavic script.
Each color became part of the meaning.
Deep blue suggests depth, intellect, and distance, something stable and almost endless. Warm white feels human, soft, imperfect, and present. Electric green stands out, grabbing attention and feeling a bit out of place. Together, these colors create a tension between calm, order, and disruption.
Deep blue suggests depth, intellect, and distance, something stable and almost endless. Warm white feels human, soft, imperfect, and present. Electric green stands out, grabbing attention and feeling a bit out of place. Together, these colors create a tension between calm, order, and disruption.
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Material Exploration
Next, I explored different materials. I wanted something that could show both precision and distortion, something structured but not completely stable. Some materials felt too neat, while others were too messy. I focused not only on how each one looked, but also on how it acted and what kind of tension it could bring to the work.
In the end, I chose acrylic paints with different thicknesses. They allowed me to move between precision and unpredictability, building up layers and textures. Thick paint gave weight and structure, while thin washes could flow and blend. This mix of control and spontaneity created a living tension in the work, reflecting how fragile and complex identity can be.
The process involved repeated attempts and revisions, reflecting the messy, negotiated nature of identity. At first, I aimed for a minimal background to keep the words central, but the pieces felt incomplete. I realized the background was not neutral—it represented society, the ever-present force shaping and confining individual identity. This shift reframed the process: the work became about making visible the tension between self and system, between clarity and constraint.
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The Construction of Seeing
The triptych explores how we read people in the same quick, often inaccurate way we read text. Each phrase is just a piece, inviting the viewer to fill in the rest. The meaning changes for everyone, depending on their own experiences and biases.
- Attempt I: Autocorrection— “I am not linear.” (Typoglycemia)
- Attempt II: Directional Meaning— “You don’t define me.” (Reading orientation)
- Attempt III: Reflection— “Don’t simplify me.” (Mirroring)
These works ask viewers to notice their habit of simplifying things and encourage them to spend time with uncertainty and complexity.
Beyond the Canvas: Carrying Identity
To take the project further, I made a wearable piece: a real leather necklace that uses the same playful typography as the first panel. Just like we piece together words from fragments, we build our identities from different impressions. What we decide to carry, and what others choose to read, shapes how we keep defining ourselves.
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| The Genuine Leather Necklace |
This triptych explores the uncertain space between what we see and what is real.
It invites to think about how we see others
and how we want to be seen ourselves.
Continue reading
[Part I — The Idea] · [Part II — The Making] · [Part III — The Meaning]
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