Doris Doku
To you in 27 years
My work explores the relationship between my inner child and myself currently. Through the themes of escapism, confrontation, denial, and nurturing I am representing myself through child-like and matured imagery. The journey through this thesis holds importance to the conversation of how the relationship between yourself as a child and yourself and how it has impacted you throughout your life. I have always been aware and fascinated with what makes me who I am as a person and what I have developed into my own personality. Whether it deals with strengths, weaknesses, triggers, or character traits, it is proven that it stems from the development stage of your childhood. Because of this, I am using my thesis to question my avoidance of my inner child and how it affects how I address myself as a person. With the use of a red string that symbolizes trauma that bonds me to my inner child and the spiked hair to symbolize an abstract version of the African thread method hairstyle my mom would frequently style my hair in, it opens a small window to the narration of my past stories. An important aspect of my work is the two characters being a form of me now and my inner child creating a dialogue in every work they are presented in.
As an artist, I am essentially interested in creating works that call for the participation of an audience with similar experiences that they dealt with in their childhood. A lot of childhood trauma is connected to the inner child and has a wide variety through the masses. I want to continue creating art that explores these topics in a way where it is relatable and eye opening to the audience. What challenged me in making this thesis project was actually having a conversation with my inner child as I created these various works. It was a triggering yet needed experience because not only did it make me break down in tears but it brought me to a point of self realization. A lot of my worries were brought to light and were made more light-hearted than heavy. The experience in making these works has been fulfilling and an inspiration for the next group of works to come.
As an artist, I am essentially interested in creating works that call for the participation of an audience with similar experiences that they dealt with in their childhood. A lot of childhood trauma is connected to the inner child and has a wide variety through the masses. I want to continue creating art that explores these topics in a way where it is relatable and eye opening to the audience. What challenged me in making this thesis project was actually having a conversation with my inner child as I created these various works. It was a triggering yet needed experience because not only did it make me break down in tears but it brought me to a point of self realization. A lot of my worries were brought to light and were made more light-hearted than heavy. The experience in making these works has been fulfilling and an inspiration for the next group of works to come.