The fat female body is an image seldom portrayed in a serious manner in today’s society. Since coming to Hamilton, I have started to unpack my internalized fatphobia, and have been actively working to provide more representation to fat women through my art. Running parallel to my exploration of body-image is a reevaluation of my sense of place. 

Born and raised in the Syracuse area, Central New York is all I have ever known. The abandoned houses that litter this part of the state feel as much like home as my actual house. I have always felt a strong connection to these buildings, and through my art I wanted to discover why. In the process of painting, I have realized there are many correlations between societal perceptions of fat bodies and those of abandoned houses. 

The connections between fatness and derelict houses runs deeper than feelings of abandonment and neglect, as both symbolize a subversion of societal boundaries and control. With no clear owner, abandoned houses exist outside the normal idea of ownership and, by extension, control. Likewise, the fat body exists outside of the societal norm, and by loving the fat body, one is renouncing the control society has on them.

I would like to thank the Steven Daniel Smallen Memorial Fund for their generous support.