Mariette Pathy Allen
Artist Statement
Originally a painter, I transitioned from painting to photography in the late 1960s. Although I first encountered, started photographing, and became an ally to transgender people in 1978, this selection of photographs represents work made since 2000. Some of the people shown here live in the gender that feels right for them; others identify as non-binary, gender fluid, or queer. I have always chosen to present gender-expansive people in the daylight of everyday life, alone or in relationships with partners, children, and friends. I have photographed them at home, at transgender conferences, political rallies, or just in random situations.
The people in this selection of photographs are comfortable with or are engaging in an exploration of their gender identity. In most cases, they are somewhere along the spectrum of anatomical modifications they may have chosen, whether temporary or permanent, from tattoos and piercings to gender confirmation surgery.
"The rapport Mariette has with her subjects, which often coincides with or develops into close personal relationships, allows her and her subjects to collaboratively unearth the captivating vitality captured in these photographs. The spontaneous yet intimate nature of these photographs establishes a transitive connection between the subject and viewer by way of this relationship, and reveals the subjects’ presence and actuality which would otherwise remain concealed." -- Jesse Egner, Artist, and Independent Scholar