shadow dolls
A cage made of chicken wire is a container for 32 identical paper doll figures. Created as a hanging mobile, the dolls are cut out from various photos showing intimate glimpses of Maray's personal experiences and represent social constructs that comprise individual identity. Portions of the dictionary definition of the word 'shadow' are printed on the back of each doll to suggest less conscious aspects of human identity. All of the dolls are connected by a transparent string to hang as if floating in a kinetic row, suggesting order and insecurity, simultaneously. The dolls fit stacked in the cage through which a hole of equal dimensions to the dolls offers an exit, which is possible only when all 32 dolls are precisely aligned with each other and the hole. The work's title refers to the hole in the cage as the 33rd definition or 'shape' and an opportunity to redefine one's identity and also referencing the belief that 33 was the age of Jesus at death.
Gateway's Heliport Gallery, Silver Spring MD, Student Show 2006