Fine Art nominee

A play on the classic Public Enemy album, "Fear of a Trans Planet" explores a series of transgender and non-binary gender identities existing outside the cisnormative framework that until fairly recently was the dominant paradigm in this country. Though the visual and sexual imagery is relatively varied, the work makes no attempt to define, delineate or encapsulate the vast spectrum of expression termed as "genderqueer," instead reflecting a fluid and even playful liberation of gender norms.

At the same time, however, I was careful to include visual and contextual cues that shed light on the potential anxieties and anguish - both physical and emotional - that can surface when a person breaks free from gender norms. That the imagery mines a less progressive American epoch, through aesthetic nods to classic Americana and the intolerant glamour of Hollywood's "Golden" Age, is a commentary on how far we have to move forward as a society - but also a reflection of how deeply rooted transgender and genderqueer styles and identities are in the fabric of America.

Alison Brady is a Brooklyn-based artist who graduated from the School of Visual Arts in 2006 with an MFA in Photography. The following year, Brady was named one of the top emerging artists in the world by the Saatchi Gallery which lauded her "humourous and disturbing body of work."

Over the past decade, Brady has shown her work in dozens of solo and group shows in New York and around the world, from Prague to Munich to Brisbane. Meanwhile, her exhibitions and photo series have been featured in several prominent national and international publications including The New York Times, Eyemazing, NY Arts Magazine, and Time Out New York. Time Out described her "Sweet Affliction" exhibition as "visceral and mysterious," while chief art critic at The New York Times Roberta Smith wrote approvingly that "Ms. Brady's work deals rather explicitly and hilariously with the female predicament."

Brady's pieces can be found in many private and public collections such as Elton John’s collection and the West Collection. Her work has also been accepted into the prestigious Artist Pension Trust by a group of leading curators from MoMA and Tate Modern. She is represented by Rick Wester Fine Art in New York.