Hannah Adams
Throughout my upbringing, there has been an emphasis on the necessity to be a dignified woman. You must be pure, you must be polite, you must be beautiful. If only it were that easy to be a Barbie. These expectations only grew to be more of an issue as I got older. When I tried to wear makeup and new fashions to express myself, I was told I was a freak and looked like a prostitute. When I tried to take care of my body and began gaining muscle, I was told I needed to lose weight. Wouldn’t it be easier if I was made of plastic? Moldable to the desires of whoever I needed to appease.
When I was twelve, I was brought onto one of the high school varsity teams. I had become best friends, or at least in my mind we were, with a young man who had just turned eighteen. Shortly after his departure from the school, he informed me there were more to his feelings than just friendship. This happened again when I was thirteen with a twenty-something. And again when I was seventeen with a substitute teacher. “You’re so mature for your age.” If only I had a dollar for every time I heard that statement.
Having grown up in a conservative society, my youth was riddled with shame, sexual repression, and premature sexualization. This left me to teeter the line of being a harlot and a puritan. The internalization of the classic Madonna-whore complex has left me with a dissociative disposition, not knowing who or what I am.
Show, Don’t Tell is an exploration into the notions of sexual identity and persona. By means of self portraiture, I am exploring the nuances of my struggles with self perception as well as the repercussions of my upbringing.
Contact information
email: hannahaddamsmedia@gmail.com
Instagram: @hannah.addams
Web: Hannahaddams.com
When I was twelve, I was brought onto one of the high school varsity teams. I had become best friends, or at least in my mind we were, with a young man who had just turned eighteen. Shortly after his departure from the school, he informed me there were more to his feelings than just friendship. This happened again when I was thirteen with a twenty-something. And again when I was seventeen with a substitute teacher. “You’re so mature for your age.” If only I had a dollar for every time I heard that statement.
Having grown up in a conservative society, my youth was riddled with shame, sexual repression, and premature sexualization. This left me to teeter the line of being a harlot and a puritan. The internalization of the classic Madonna-whore complex has left me with a dissociative disposition, not knowing who or what I am.
Show, Don’t Tell is an exploration into the notions of sexual identity and persona. By means of self portraiture, I am exploring the nuances of my struggles with self perception as well as the repercussions of my upbringing.
Contact information
email: hannahaddamsmedia@gmail.com
Instagram: @hannah.addams
Web: Hannahaddams.com