Untitled (Self-Portrait) 2000

This untitled self-portrait was made by Ann Hamilton using black and white photography, a medium that makes you think of the past, of memory, and of stark contrasts. There’s a rawness to it, a lack of glamour, that pulls you into the moment of the photograph. The texture here is paramount. The strands emerging from the mouth, are they string, hair, or something else entirely? Each one has its own weight, its own direction, and little droplets of water clinging on. The stark contrast enhances the physicality, making you almost feel the weight and texture in your own mouth. It’s uncomfortable, but also strangely compelling. The beauty of a piece like this is how it refuses to offer easy answers. It’s a moment captured, a question posed, a feeling evoked. It reminds me a little of Hannah Wilke’s work, especially in the way it uses the artist's own body to explore themes of identity and the abject, inviting us into a space where beauty and discomfort coexist.