I
propose creating a zine on the topic of the gender dysphoria/euphoria. I want
to document different people’s experience with their gender – this will be in
the form of drawing, photography, poetry, and profiles of individuals. This
will be a personal project - I experience discomfort and anxiety surrounding
gender, in definition, performance, and presentation. I want to create a zine,
something pocket size, that can be used as a reminder for other individuals who suffer from gender dysphoria that they are not alone.
I
am making this for individuals who experience discomfort with their gender, yes,
but also as a method of communication for others who do not experience gender
dysphoria so they can learn about what it is and empathize. Many times gender dysphoria is considered incredibly binary – for example, a
trans women is perceived as a man due to physical features and presentation and
is uncomfortable with this because she is a woman “in her head.” These kinds of
stereotypes are harmful. Gender dysphoria can occur to anyone who is trans, nonbinary,
genderqueer. The only real qualification of experiencing dysphoria is its definition,
in that one experiences self-loathing or uncomfortableness, of any scale, surrounding
their social gender role and/or physical characteristics. This is an issue that
affects the lives of self-identified women and non-binary people and is an
issue that should be recognized as real by cis people.
I will distribute this zine through the public, among
friends, and possibly in an educational center as well. I am also toying with
the idea of making the zine more focused towards the gender dysphoria that
occurs with clothing and the fashion industry, and leaving the zine in the
dressing rooms of clothing stores. This zine may also be published online and
shared throughout the queer community. This zine fits through my portfolio of
work because I have worked with poetry and photography in the past. I consider
myself an artistic person – I wouldn’t go so far as to consider myself an
artist. This zine would be my first foray into publishing.
Here are some of the
resources I will use to continue my research into gender dysphoria:
Dea,
Shannon “Beyond the Binary: Thinking about Sex and Gender” Broadview Press, May
17 2016
Dreger,
Alice “Why Gender Dysphoria Should No Longer Be Considered a Medical Disorder” PSMAG, October 18 2013
Signorile, Michaelangelo “Queer in America: Sex, the
Media, and Closets of Power” University of Wisconsin Press, July 15 2003
I will also look into the Queer Zine Archive to gain inspiration for what goes into creating a zine, as I have never done this before.
I really like your idea, and think that it's a great way to have people who experience gender dysphoria to educate those who don't. The fact that it will be so personal allows, I believe, a sense of empathy to be created among the artist and zine reader. And I think your zine could not only open people's eyes up to the struggle of gender dysphoria, but also how we're all humans and all much more similar than we might assume. Maybe you could also focus on the portrayal of gender dysphoria in film and tv. I feel like it's a topic getting more and more attention from the tv and film industry, and it would be interesting to hear about what people who experience gender dysphoria feel about gender dysphoria media portrayal. Is it accurate? Are they happy with it? Why or why not? Here's a link to a article similar to your project, and may help you with some inspiration.
ReplyDeletehttps://www.buzzfeed.com/skarlan/we-asked-people-to-illustrate-what-their-gender-dysphoria-fe
Thank you so much for this article Tamsin, I'm finding it super helpful!
DeleteI really like this topic because it is something that I personally will like to learn about myself. I see that one of your sources is about why it should no longer be considered a medical disorder and I think that's a crucial source because I know that I was taught that gender dysphoria is a medical disorder and because of that it's been particularly hard for me to unwrap my head around. Distributing your zine outside the queer community may also be helpful to combating ignorance around this topic as well as approaching it through the lens of someone who knows little about this topic may allow you to increase its effectiveness. This may sound odd but maybe even including a little dictionary in the beginning of your zine may be cool because it doesn't assume that everyone understands the language and the message that you are going to discuss.
ReplyDeleteI really love this idea of a little terms dictionary, thank you Alicia!
DeleteFirst, I love your idea on researching about gender and the people's experiences with that subject. I also like that you are creating a small zine that can be carried everywhere and even online. I like how you have clear thoughts and steps about your project and I think that will really define your final project even more. Through this project, I think it will be really helpful for everyone when it is distributed into the world
ReplyDeleteThanks Haelee!
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