At one point, the moderator for the #AlchemyProject opened up the room for questions and comments. A young woman who sat nearby said she thought the images were "refreshing" to see; she loved the muscle definition presented in the photos -- particularly in women. When she was developing muscle mass herself, her friends made her feel like she did something wrong. Masculine is typically what people call your body when it's accentuated but strength has no gender. I reflected on all of the times that I dimmed my own light in efforts of preserving others' ideals on beauty and mental safety. I credit my careers over the course of a decade to not giving a fuck about opinions and acknowledging the trendsetter within myself. It's a very hard thing to do. Standing alone in your own truth can be very isolating. People make snide remarks, call you zany and it's crazy as hell to see them congratulate you when a consensus defines you as worthy. Ain't that a bitch? Thank you to every person who told me I couldn't make it being openly queer, loud mouthed, a rule breaker, possessing "masculine" mental and physical qualities (whatever that may mean), potty mouthed, accused of being too much of an extrovert, called selfish when I put myself first, a pawn because I cared for my tribe "too much", being androgynous, sexually liberated and a spectrum of self inflicted phobic things that they tried to bounce onto me. Thank you for trying to add onto my insecurities. I needed to see what failure looks like to fix my own shortcomings. What I wish for all of us to do is to stare intensely into a mirror until it make us uncomfortable and when we feel that moment of awkwardness, question the source. Is it something that came from you or are you hearing other people's voices -- then fix it. Here's a takeaway from last night's conversation: We are thriving in an era where we generate our own content. Our lives are intricate stories begging to be woven together. I don't fault any of those people who made me feel less than at one point; I think they were still learning themselves as I am still trying to grow into my own greatest achievement; I'm not sure what that is just yet. (at Gallery Max New York) https://www.instagram.com/p/B3ezYIrnjXW/?igshid=1538bjrtuw8or
