Lindsay Siu

Self-Portraits, 2022

This series of self-portraits considers questions about the mass-production of art, its monetization and valuation, and the relationship between artist, art, and ownership. It is an exploration of beauty standards, self-worth and cultural identity, as shaped by modern, commercial fashion and also by the clothes worn by women in my family, and passed down over generations.

With this series of 60 nearly identical, yet totally different portraits, I was able to channel such diverse inspirations as Renaissance portraiture, contemporary artists Andy Warhol and Cindy Sherman, and the recent phenomenon of NFT art.

The series was also inspired by the women in my family, and the clothing they had left to me. These women, my mother, aunts, grandmothers, were my role models–all educated, hardworking and loving. We also shared a love of fashion and, amazingly, similar dress sizes. Looking through my wardrobe of vintage clothing, I was inspired by the thought that these dresses were specifically chosen and tailored by these important women in my life, and marked their own unique journeys–traveling across oceans, finding new homes and new closets, and decorating my life and my family’s history, along the way.

-Lindsay Siu

Website https://lindsaysiu.com/