My subjects are approached with the question: “Imagine years from now you are working on a documentary about your life story; how would you most accurately portray yourself the way you are today? Pick a typical scene that would describe you at this point in your life.” This body of work explores how people perceive their own identity and how this identity is performed. Roland Barthes has noted that there has always been a theatrical quality to portraiture, a kind of “Tableau Vivant.” I was intrigued by what kind of scenes the subjects would create. Given that a photographic portrait only has the ability to capture the surface of a person, the meaning of my work lies in the slippage between intention and reception. The result is a depiction of the subject that borders on fantasy. The image is ambivalent, highlighting the internal desire of the subject to present his/her ”self,” and the reality of the image obtained. It is this cycle of fantasy and representation, between the internal and the surface that interests me.