Thy Tran – [↖] Untitled from Cacher series (2016); [↗] Untitled from Cacher series (2016) ; [↙] Untitled from Cacher series (2016); [↘] Untitled from Cacher series (2016)

When I saw Tran’s work, my first thought was: wow, there’s A LOT of overlap with Kim-Ngân Ao (aka yatender). Both filter elements from Lina Scheynius and Ren Hang through a stubbornly lo-fi analog aesthetic.

However, after sitting here suffering from that oft reported feeling in police procedurals where the unorthodox detective feels like she’s missing a piece of the puzzle that’s right there staring her in the face, I figured it out: Tran and Ao almost certainly know each other.

Consider: this self-portrait from Tran’s Flickr account and this photo made by yatender–the tattoos are the same.

Initially, my thought was that I favored yatender’s work but I’m not so sure that’s the case any longer. Yes, both are working in very similar veins but I think yatender is more audacious in the risks she takes as well as being decidedly on the take photos vs make photos end of the spectrum; Tran is more reserved and contemplative as well as being decidedly on the making end of the aforementioned spectrum.

Also, being that Tran’s Cacher series is focused on interrogating her identity as a lesbian and the visibility vs invisibility that comes part and parcel with that–her work resonates more with me as a fellow queer person.