Le Great Gabby

Project Galatea is an ongoing ethnographic portrait series that depicts survivors of sexual and domestic violence, informed by informal recorded interviews, from which a visual metaphor is drawn and incorporated into the work. Interviews are unstructured and guided purely by what survivors want their audience to know about them and their experiences, not always including description of the experiences themselves. These interviews can focus on but are not limited to things the subject has learned, advice they may have, detailing of experiences, exploration of feelings, etc. Once interviews are transcribed and have been reviewed by the subjects, a photo shoot generally takes place, from which images are selected with the subjects' preferences in mind. However, as the project has adapted to current times, in person interaction is not necessary to participate.

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A phenomenon often described by many survivors of this violence is the feeling of being frozen or stunned, like in the myth that gives this project its name. Galatea is a mythological Greek figure, a statue carved by the artist Pygmalion that was brought to life through his touch and becomes his literal object of desire. Galatea attempts to give agency back to those whose lives have been affected against their will.

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The information sheet which participants can review that explains the aims of the project, the process undertaken during collaboration, and the protections put in place to guard private/identifying information is available upon request.

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If you have experienced sexual or domestic violence and would potentially like to participate in Project Galatea or would like more information, please contact legreatgabby.contact@gmail.com. All correspondence is entirely confidential.

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Note: While none of these images are explicitly violent in nature, the corresponding interviews attached to them may contain mentions of violence, so caution is advised. Content warnings are included at the top of each interview.

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