All My Dresses

All My Dresses

Arzu Arda Kosar
Photos, 2020-2021

During the pandemic my daily wardrobe consisted of a uniform of tights and t-shirts and I realized I had an abandoned wardrobe of superfluous clothes. While I felt a strong sense of nostalgia for my old life, putting on the dresses created a sense of self alienation, as if they belonged to a different person. So I cataloged my dresses, feeling pretty good when I could zip them up, all the while asking questions such as: Why did I even bother to get these clothes in the first place? What did I use to do in these clothes? What did I expect of them when I first chose them? What kind of a life did I intend or hope I was going to lead in them as I held on to them? What was my vision then, what is it now? What good are they now?“All My Dresses” started out as playing dress up for fun and ended with me cataloging all my dresses a la Charles Ray and delving into existential issues a la Proust.