Our nation is born through our bodies, so how and when this nation is built is ours to decide. Decisions about access to abortion, birth control, hormone therapy, and IVF have no place in the state house. Our physical autonomy, identity, and personal freedoms are fundamental human rights. 

Humor and joy are important activities in maintaining resilience. Vajazzle, as a form of sexual fetishism and a visual language, is inherently playful and irreverent. When packed densely together the crystals can appear armor-like — protective, yet celebratory. There is power in privacy and self-exploration, and healthy sexual expression should empower whomever is involved. In Capitol V, vajazzle becomes a symbol for freedom. 

During the nine years I worked on this series, active erosion of federal protections for abortion led to the overturning of Roe, placing state governments in control of the very bodies that birth this nation. Returning to this project over the years has involved connecting with each state and thinking of the people I love living there as bizarre and restrictive state laws become part of their lives. 

The series includes renderings of all 50 state capitol buildings as well as the capitol buildings of six inhabited US territories, patterned out of Swarovski Crystal. The portraits are scaled to one-tenth the height of the actual capitol buildings and hold between 150 and 2,800 crystals per pattern — nearly 60,000 crystals glimmering together. An embedded clitoris at the base of each of the capitol steps feminizes these often-domed capitol buildings, situating equity and pleasure in the halls of power.

The artworks are framed in layered shadow boxes, with each vajazzle appearing to float over an image of a “virgin” landscape. These landscapes capture the natural beauty of each state and territory. The interplay of the structured patterns and the landscape images creates a dialogue between the manicured and the untamed, the governed and the wild. All images were scanned from postcards within the public domain from the Picture Collection at the New York City Public Library Main Branch. 

I feel it is imperative in this moment to draw focus to the layered relationships our bodies have with both federal and state governments. It inspired my choice to open this exhibition on the eve of the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee. I created Capitol V to draw focus to the negotiation of power between women’s bodies and state governments across our nation. It exists as a reminder that it is we who hold the power.

My body. My nation. My vote.