Sara
as
a
As one of my childhoods favourite types the cowboy ended up being the motive for a project made of scraps from other failed ones. The vest was made in a fabric too stiff for its original purpose, and the pattern for the trousers was a failed attempt to cut something from scratch. As a result the two piece became a paper like cowboy costume with a cartoonishly shape.
Cowboy
I started creating a character for the person as I shot the photos. In Norway we have a tv show presenting three types of Santas (yes Santa Claus) out of which one is grey. The grey Santa lives by the sea and is a symbol of peace, understanding and wisdom.
As a kid I never quite acknowledged the violent sides of a cowboy, so in many ways this understated costume became a tribute to the kind of cowboy I actually dressed up as on Halloween.
*note that cowboy in my mind is a gender neutral word referring more to the idealised motive rather than the actual historical figure.
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September 2019