Alina Perez (American, b. 1995)
Self portrait after Tiresias, 2024
Stone Lithograph
40" x 30" (101.5 x 76 cm)
Edition of 9 plus 2 artist's proofs
Alina Perez has unveiled a new edition, a stone lithograph titled "Self portrait after Tiresias," 2024 (40" x 30", 101.5 x 76 cm, Edition of 9 plus 2 artist's proofs).
Working with Petrichor Press, the edition is the first of its kind from Perez. The image was created by drawing directly onto the 800-pound stone. Oriented vertically, this mirrored the posture and process the artist engages in her own studio. Please find behind-the-scenes images of this process featured on this page.
"Self portrait after Tiresias" brings Perez's notions of queer mutability to the fore, recasting herself as the titular prophet of ancient Greek myth. Claiming the snakes from the original tale as familiars of her own, the artist draws them close in a pose that mirrors Leonardo da Vinci's famed portrait "Lady with an Ermine" (1489-1491).
According to myth, Tiresias lived a long and eventful life, which included seven years during which he was transformed from a man into a woman. Whilst hiking on Mount Cyllene, Tiresias struck a pair of copulating snakes with a stick, angering the goddess Hera, who transformed Tiresias into a woman as punishment. As a woman, he became a priestess of Hera, and bore children, including a daughter who also possessed the gift of prophecy. Seven years later, Tiresias encountered mating snakes again, and, this time, left them in peace. As reward, Hera returned him back to his original state as a man.
Perez recognizes in Tiresias a metaphor for internal change as a response to the world, as well as the ways bodies and environments are contingent on one another. The snakes that surround the artist are derived from the original story, and recall species both endemic and invasive to her home region of South Florida. As Tiresias is changed by his encounter with serpents and deities, so individuals are by their formative experiences.
"Self portrait after Tiresias" is featured in Family Romance, Alina Perez's first solo exhibition with Yossi Milo, on view through Saturday, March 8, 2025.
