This project plays off some concepts that I tackled in my first project. I had a lot of fun with it, as I’ve always wanted to experiment with projectors, mirrors, and cameras. In this project, I projected a picture of a map onto the wall. Throughout the series of photos, the map is intended to burn more and more as I take my clothes off. In the beginning, the map is only slightly burned, and I am fully clothed, starting to remove my tie. By the end of the series, the map is mostly burned, and I am flexing my abs in the mirror. The map represents the path that my parents, peers, and society wanted me to take. I realized this and thus set fire to the map. As it burned, I gained more confidence in myself and began to stand up for what I believe in. I can’t lie, I was kind of nervous about presenting these because I’ve always felt a little awkward in pictures of myself and my body. I always felt like my smiles looked fake, so in this project, I decided not to smile at all. There are multiple layers to this project for me, and one of them is the lack of confidence I’ve felt regarding my body and personality. However, this project is meant to show how I’ve become more confident in being myself, and I kind of exposed myself in the process. I expected some jokes to be made, and when I presented, there were definitely a couple, but overall, I think the project came full circle, as I literally faced the internal turmoil and fear of judgment before I had to present. In the end, I think my classmates and I had a good time, and I’m happy I mustered up the confidence to share it with the class. To be honest, I didn’t have a choice, and if I had, I might not have shared these photos.