Series description
A documentary series composed of photographs, films and texts about the history of voices of trans, non-binary and intersex people. The photographs are like totem poles; sculptures made for the camera that accompany biographical accounts.
The starting point for this series is the story of the voice of the artist themselves, Masina Pinheiro, whose puberty transition took place at the age of 23. Their thin voice from childhood stood alongside an intuitively non-binary identity, an effeminate body with masculine expectations. The series also tells the story of voices who have undergone surgical procedures to alter decibels and conform to their gender identity. Challenging gender impositions is a determining factor that interrupts lives, especially in Brazil, the country with the highest rate of murders of LGBTQIANB+ populations in the world.
Biography
Rodrigo Masina Pinheiro (1987) is an interdisciplinary, trans non-binary artist and educator, born and raised in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. They uses different media in their work, such as photography, film-essay and sculpture. Their series entitled "GH, Gal e Hiroshima", made in collaboration with artist Gal Cipreste, was one of the 10 finalists for the Louis Roederer Discovery Award at Les Rencontres d’Arles 2022 and won First Place in the PhMuseum Photography Grant 2021.
‘I Am a Bird Now’
‘I Am a Bird Now’ is the title of Anohni’s album from 2005, released by her band Antony and the Johnsons. It is one of the most relevant in the world for the trans and non-binary presence in music. A wooden whistle with the sound of a partridge bird is placed on the booklet between two portraits, including Antony’s on the right.
© Rodrigo Masina Pinheiro, Brazil, Shortlist, Professional competition, Still Life, 2023 Sony World Photography Awards
Testosterone Notes
Testosterone vials placed over the holes of a recorder. As notes move down the scale (a lower register), there is less liquid inside the vials. Macaia, a trans man, collects these repositories in a glass jar. The transition for him began naturally; his body has always produced more hair and his voice has always been deeper than expected. Nothing was ever wrong.
© Rodrigo Masina Pinheiro, Brazil, Shortlist, Professional competition, Still Life, 2023 Sony World Photography Awards
© Rodrigo Masina Pinheiro, Brazil, Shortlist, Professional competition, Still Life, 2023 Sony World Photography Awards
Esqueleto do pássaro de Maya
In her autobiography, Maya Angelou boldly reveals why she didn’t speak for five years as a child. Rape and sexual abuse are common weapons used against the lives of many minorities. ‘Correction weapons’, as they are regrettably called, are still methods of silencing. Gender violence is public violence and does not generate the expected commotion because it has been normalised for centuries.
Above the bird drawn on the cover, there is a capo (an object used on the neck of a guitar to change the tone of the notes and make them lower).
© Rodrigo Masina Pinheiro, Brazil, Shortlist, Professional competition, Still Life, 2023 Sony World Photography Awards
Turtledove
A wooden whistle that emulates the voice of a turtledove.
© Rodrigo Masina Pinheiro, Brazil, Shortlist, Professional competition, Still Life, 2023 Sony World Photography Awards