My thesis work developed out of a personal tension and insecurity surrounding the complexity and the seemingly contradictory nature of my identity. For an example, as a feminist, artist, and scholar, is it acceptable to also be a lover of popular culture tropes, makeup, and fashion? I have learned that female empowerment comes in many different forms. This paper will discuss the ways I have been visually exploring the female identity through multiplicity, contradiction, and most importantly: acceptance. I want my work to operate in a way that communicates the complexity of identity, transcends binary thinking, and promotes introspection. Third wave feminist thought provides an avenue for considering the transformative properties that can arise when tension between dominant cultural ideas and divergent peripheral philosophies collide. It is through third wave feminism that I have been able to reconcile my own contradictory ideas, experiences, feelings of guilt, etc. within myself, and realize the importance of acceptance and inclusivity on a personal/societal level
