A ritual performance work presented as an installation.

The dress is stitched with 422 marks for every new moon that marked my life. 5 white marks record my birth, first period, starting testosterone, top surgery, and hysterectomy. Performed on the first new moon after surgery, I wore the dress in a sea ritual. I submerged at sunrise and low tide, the water washing away the soluble fabric holding the dress together, leaving only the remnant marks. This was a cleansing. A rebirth. A self-made ritual to mark this turning point in my gender journey.

The installation engages haptic, olfactory, and oratory senses. To offer a glimpse into gender euphoria and understand what that is like through the body, in ways the mind alone may not be able to if you are not trans.

A video recording of the performance plays through a pinhole in a wall-mounted box. Audio of extremely slowed waves creates a hypnotic, cocooning soundscape . Samphire spray invokes olfactory memories. Transformed objects from the ritual hold traces left behind by things which no longer exist – the impression of a teabag drunk after submersion. Printed photographs of the ritual dress’s transformation offer testimony to the process. Instructions give insight into the ritual’s preparation.

Last exhibited at Colonnade House, Worthing (2025)