ARTIST STATEMENT
My practice explores the remnants of violence and lies at the intersection of institutional violence against queer people and interpersonal violence against feminine-presenting people. My work centers around introspection in order to heal and identify the ways in which my lived experience is shaped by gender. I practice art as an act of catharsis after many experiences with gender based violence and oppression. My art allows me to explore the social contexts that accompany the experience of being in a feminine-presenting body. This piece speaks to the confusing feelings that arise around sex and arousal after experiencing trauma. At first glance, sex seems alluring but then fear sets in and with it the taunting realization of what must be overcome to experience pleasure again. Although colorful and seductive, this image addresses the painful struggle of re-embodying one’s own sexuality after trauma.
ABOUT THE ARTIST
Oona Bruss (b. 2001) is an interdisciplinary artist hailing from the San Francisco Bay Area with focuses in digital photography and screen printing. She graduated with a BA in Design and a minor in Studio Art from Tulane University in 2023. During her time in New Orleans, Oona began experimenting with her art practice and was in her first two group exhibitions, “Artists Respond: Post-Roe Louisiana” and “Tulane Undergraduate Juried Exhibition” (2022) where she won the Juror’s Award. Since graduating, Oona has moved to Long Beach and is working as a studio assistant for an established artist as well as an intern at the community print shop while maintaining her own practice.
© Oona Bruss