Untitled. From "Secret Life of a Drag Queen" series. Reykjavik, 2017. - Limited Edition 1 of 3 Photograph

Photo series SECRET LIFE OF A DRAG QUEEN is a part of broader project exploring performative nature of gender. It follows a group of Drag artists from Iceland witnessing their every day life and behind the scenes of variety nightlife in Reykjavik. The series gives an opportunity to get to know the lives that these artists lead outside of their shows. It’s, at the same time, a gender stereotype research and an attempt to illustrate an environment, which doesn’t adhere to the expectations of society about what is “normal”. Secret Life of a Drag Queen is a documentary portrait photography project that took me the longest period of time to complete – more than one and a half year which I spent in Reykjavik, Iceland. I was impressed that the art form of Drag which we usually associate with the ambiguous entertainment and part of the LGBTQIA+ nightlife could reveal so much about power structures of society, identity formation and ways of personal and political liberation. “Often taken close-up, Kaspars Bekeris’ photographs capture the small details of the act of gendering in a way that brings visual ambiguity to the forefront of his compositions. They share with drag a certain ambiguity, which creates a space for expression.” In the light of assimilation of drag by popular culture in recent years, I wanted to explore the roots of this art form. My aim was to witness drag performance on a small stage in a dark bar, document behind the scenes of drag shows and everyday life of drag artists. I enjoyed the limitations this setting prescribed – taking photos in a dark, intimate environments, illuminating just most important part of the frame, focusing on details. I love the rough grain on those photos emphasise that those are the moments showing drag art in it's purest form. I emerged myself into a story for a long period of time, exploring the characters and their lives. It gave an added value to the project, by creating a personal and genuine relationship with them, I was able to know more about their struggles. The project resulted in a number of photo exhibitions in Iceland and Latvia and in the next few months it will be published as “Estranged. Photo album of Icelandic drag family.” — an intersectional zine on countercultures. To accentuate the struggle between light and darkness in the photography I choose an amazing Hahnemühle Fine Art Print, Photo Rag 308 g/m2 paper which gives to the photography almost watercolor painting look. It is made of 100% cotton and has a matte surface. Every print of limited edition have it's own unique number (1 to 3) and has been signed by the photographer. Keep in mind that the dimensions of the print will be 46x66 cm, as it has 3 cm of white edge from all sides. IMPORTANT: 50% of income from sold artworks will be dedicated to fund an amazing new intersectional zine on counter-cultures #estranged. More information about the project on www.estrangedmag.com

Photography:Color on Paper

Artist Produced Limited Edition of:1

Size:23.6 W x 15.7 H x 0.1 D in

Delivery Time:Typically 5-7 business days for domestic shipments, 10-14 business days for international shipments.