Imago

Imago, 2026. 6 minutes 19 seconds

Created for Lumière Arts Festival, Imago is a video work that explores the process of metamorphosis as a queer metaphor for coming out. Inspired by a family trip with his nephews to a butterfly atrium in 2026, photographs of the artist as a child are examined through a macro lens. Closeups of smiles are paired with Super 8 footage of butterflies filmed during the trip. As the smile slowly fades from the child’s face as they age, the stages of metamorphosis are compared to the stages of coming out –  with the chrysalis being a metaphorical version of ‘the closet’ and coming out as breaking free from the chrysalis to become a butterfly. Through the video, the artist recounts their own experience through this metamorphosis.