2026 SPE Annual Conference: Catalyst for Exchange
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print this pageYou're Looking, I'm Looking
Kylee Isom
Thursday, March 19 - 3:00PM to 4:00PM
Atlanta 4
You're Looking, I'm Looking is a culminating pulse of the past and present-day function of looking. Within the index of the image, the gaze has a stronghold in historical and contemporary notions of power, representation, and gender stereotype. This presentation will dissect the changing-face of the contemporary gaze and the various ways in which historical image-making has informed the lens by which images are viewed, still today. Male, female, consumer, sex-positive are words popularized in front of the word "gaze" to make distinct the morphing climate around the power of looking. This discussion utilizes these precursors to theorize the evolution of the gaze and its effect on the social and political constructs of gender. Utilizing a few projects by the artist which reference systems like the porn industry and selfie-culture, this work articulates the way in which structures rooted in exploitation and misrepresentation have increasing control over who is looking, how they are looking, and what they are looking for.
You're Looking, I'm Looking utilizes projects from the artist that serve as markers on a timeline which spans from the very first recorded selfie all the way to AI social media influencers. Mined archival material, fabricated photographic objects, built stage sets, and hyper-manicured self-portraits work to undermine the changing function of gaze and dismantle the hierarchy between viewer and viewed. The paper doll housewife is draped upon the rashy flesh of a leather couch, taxidermied eyes with a boomerang gaze. The bedroom stage set is strung by visible fishing line, sustained for only a moment's performance. The pixel-bound naked body sits like a wall of bricks, something to take apart and something to have. This discussion will weave past foundations and forward-facing building blocks to question the future of the gaze. How might one yield the weapon to undermine the very system that controls? You are looking at me, while I am looking at you.
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Kylee Isom
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