Vestal Virgins (shut that whole thing down,)

Archival digital prints

11x18"

2017

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Sculptures of Roman Vestal Virgins are distorted through solarization (a photographic process that partially reverses a print’s highlights) and the selfie-editing app FaceTune. They subvert their original

function as symbols of chastity and become shape-shifting entities that reproduce en masse. Part of the title comes from former Missouri Congressman Todd Akin, who once claimed abortions were

unnecessary for rape victims. "If it's legitimate rape, the female body has ways to try to shut that whole thing down.” Perhaps these images are the figments of Akin’s imagination, what women’s bodies look

like when “shutting it down.” Or, the words indicate a call to arms...