Ides of Gender - Zach Oren

Ides of Gender is a photo series celebrating everyone under the trans umbrella – binary and non-binary. Since 2017, I set out to document the rich diversity within the trans community and have had the privilege of photographing over 650 trans folx in all 49 continental US states, as well as Hawai’i, Puerto Rico, and Washington D.C. There’s an obsession with trans bodies that society often feels entitled to – objectified and scrutinized to the point of physical harm. Being cisgender, I had a responsibility to photograph each person honestly and with utmost integrity. From the very beginning, the series has been a collaborative exercise in trust – trusting that a complete stranger will show up and share their authentic self. Extracting their own truth and facing my camera intimately, I never had to take anyone’s photograph. It was generously given to me. I see myself in all of these portraits. I hope you see your own journey mirrored back within these lives. Representation matters. Visibility matters.