MEGAN SINCLAIR | A Preservation Of Character 37, 2022

I long to see the world as I once did. I long to feel the world as I once did.

In A Preservation of Character I use the act of removal to incite vulnerability. I shed a cold exterior and ground myself with what remains. I remove my clothing, a physical layer of protection. I remove the hair from my head, a totem of gender. I attempt to let go of protective behavior, expression, and thought. What I feel shields me from danger in the outside world has become a part of who I present myself as. Here I am neighbored only by textures, shapes, and light, leaving me to observe and interact with myself. Who am I without these defenses? I look at the changes in my character and remember this vulnerability as something that once came easily.

BIO

Megan Sinclair’s large format self-portraits explore her relationship with body, mind, and environment; using vulnerability to process and heal trauma. She builds in-home sets; minimizing distractions by reducing and controlling her environments. She graduated with her Bachelor’s of Photography in 2020 from California State University, Sacramento, and has since exhibited in galleries across the country and internationally. She was awarded Finalist of the Head On Portrait Award, Best in Black and White at the Montgomery Photo Festival, received an honorable mention in the Julia Margaret Cameron Awards and a nomination for the Black and White Spider Awards, and has been published by Fotofilmic and F-Stop Magazine. She is currently based in Portland, Oregon, USA, and is an active member of The Portland Darkroom as well as on the exhibition committee of Blue Sky Gallery.