Dismantle Beauty (2025)

The definition of dismantle means: to disassemble or pull down; take apart, to disconnect the pieces of, to destroy the integrity or functioning of. I take satisfaction in altering the appearance of women from different advertisements through the process of doing image transfers. I specifically select images from Black American publications where the women in the advertisements are seen as the epitome of beauty, adorned with the best cosmetics, wigs and different hairstyles from a time long ago.

During the process of rubbing and peeling the paper of each image transfer, the ink on the surface beautifully stains the tile as I carefully reveal what’s underneath. Each outcome unpredictable and diverse–further illustrating that Black women are not a monolith. My decision to do image transfers on ceramic tile was intentional, associating the complexity and depth that I associate with being a Black woman–metaphorically, the 4"x4" ceramic tile is fragile, meant to be handled with care, but also stable enough to withstand friction.