Transmasculine Regard is a sculptural self-portrait series inspired by the artist’s lived experience as a nonbinary transmasculine person. Throughout their artistic career, Mal Chick has returned repeatedly to the human body and stories of the human experience as sources of artistic inspiration. In this series, the artist serves as both subject and storyteller.

Mal Chick depicts themself nude in confident, unapologetic poses with top surgery scars displayed prominently. Personal stories, likely familiar to the queer audience they honor, are burned into the ceramic surfaces. The stories and scars represent the violent, painful, and intentional acts it takes to be queer, and the enduring medium transforms these stories into something tangible.

Transmasculine Regard is a vulnerable exposure of being trans in a world that increasingly denies the queer existence. This series serves as a message of hope and reminds the queer community that we are strong, resilient, beautiful, and vital to the world.