The Paper Bag Project

Stefani Byrd

Life Sized C-type Prints mounted on Sentra Board with Recorded Audio Interviews.

2005-07

This photographic portrait series is of closeted members of the gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender community living in the deep South in the late 2000s. Participants for this project were recruited off of the now defunct personals section of Craigslist. An ad was placed online for those that wished to be photographed and to share their stories about why they chose to remain closeted. Stories ranged from fears about losing their jobs, being disowned by their families, and not wishing to be divorced from their spouses who they loved, despite being sexually incompatible.

The images conceal and skew the subject’s identity via a mask which preserves their anonymity and also serves as a visual metaphor for the mask they must wear everyday in regards to who they are. The subjects chose both the location of the photographs and a pseudonym, which is used as the portrait’s title. Audio interviews with the participants plays can be listened to in headphones which creates an intimate conversation between the audience and the portrait subject. These stories are intimate confessions, many never previously shared, that the anonymity of the work allows them to share. The project is intended to build awareness about the issues that face these individuals.