According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 1 in 5 women and 1 in 71 men will be the victims of sexual assault. JANE DOE no. 21 was conceived from my own experience of finding myself unwittingly and forensically situated in that 20%.

Video footage references a child in utero, the color blue implies trust. Film transparencies represent an exam curtain constructed from medical photography. The transparencies reference clarity and making visible something formerly unseen. Pregnant women and children were viewed as objects, nothing more than body parts and a targeted collection of trophies. A sonogram configures shadows of innermost body parts. However, sometimes these shadows fall across our souls. The first tranche of questions in a sexual assault intake form is often constructed to ascertain whether the victim may have financial motivations in making an accusation. The third question after “address?” and “date of birth?” will often be “have you ever filed for bankruptcy?” My motivation for sharing this story is because I can share the story. The process of un-silencing sexual assault can be an inadvertent form of assault in itself.

My larger artistic practice has always been focused on unveiling and revealing, looking through things to find alternate and interchanging meanings. My motivation for sharing JANE DOE no. 21 is to encourage other people, those who may feel that they don’t have a voice, to come forward and defend the right to un-silence with dignity and free from shame.