My interest in creating the series Fantasy Wives/Reality Lives began as a personal inquiry into the dynamics of my parents’ divorce. I was compelled to explore the cultural forces that shaped their understanding of marriage—particularly their perceptions of gender roles, identity, and womanhood.

     Both were children of the 1950s, a decade steeped in postwar idealism and the rise of American consumer culture. Women were depicted as radiant homemakers, joyfully using modern appliances to serve their families—a glossy, sanitized image that stood in stark contrast to the historical reality of systemic oppression. At that time, women were denied basic financial autonomy; they could not open a bank account or obtain a credit card without a husband's permission. Even more chilling, a woman could be institutionalized at her husband’s discretion, labeled “hysterical” or “unstable” for defying social norms.

     My mother’s experience reflects the quiet suffering of many women of her generation. She struggled with depression and a deep sense of invisibility—feelings rooted in a society that devalued her voice and agency. These wounds, often unspoken, ripple across generations.

     In my latest series, Women as Home Decor, I confront this legacy of silencing. I obscure my subjects with painted lampshades, transforming them into domestic objects—faceless, decorative, and passive. These figures symbolize the reduction of women to their aesthetic and reproductive value, rather than their intellect, complexity, or inner life.

Through this work, I hope to illuminate the ongoing struggle for visibility and voice. It is a gesture of reclamation—for my mother, for myself, and for all those whose stories have been muted by history.