14 – Mahalia Taje Giotto

Switzerland/Italy (1992)

existential boner

The project existential boner is a piece about obsession. The obsession to become a person other than the one designated by a sex category at birth, the obsession to feel at one with your body, the obsession to find your place in society. Mahalia Giotto, aka Taje, was born in 1992 in a female body and went through several phases of physical transformation, writing on skin as a child to tattoos as a young adult and eating disorders during adolescence. Taje began his transition in 2020. This identity journey lies at the heart of this piece, in a game of superimposing images to express the incessant chaotic thoughts within.

Like the spray used to write, Taje’s artistic gesture is radical and spontaneous, and risk-taking becomes a strength. The artist explores his own sexuality and fluid identity while bringing visibility to the LGBTQIA+ community.

Warning: some images contain sensitive content which some people may find offensive or disturbing.

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existential boner: Have a look at the gallery