Em Chmiel
Unbaby
"Unbaby" is a photographic exploration of the
often-overlooked trauma and isolation experienced within
the reproductive healthcare system. It serves as a
testament to the challenges faced by women and
birthing individuals as they navigate the dehumanizing
landscape of the American medical-industrial complex.
more literally,
It is the globs of Vaseline my grandmother taught me to coat my
tampon with when I was learning how to insert it dry
It is the hydrogen peroxide I poured on my sheets when my period
drops browned in the morning
It is the metallic middle-school fountain tap water that I
resuscitated myself with when I had my first panic attack in sex ed
It is the mollifying nature of the olive oil that I slick down my coarse
pubic hairs with and the tase of Tend Skin that comes after
It is the innocently saline beads I licked off your sixteen year old
skin because we were trying to learn how to love
It is the silicone drops that slid off the lips of my labia before we
knew that latex sleeves could not bear them
It is the nakedness of having your legs spread open by plastic
oval-ar rings
and the cold lubricant of latex-gloved fingers that you are not ready
to feel inside
It is the ulcer-inducing stabs of the 52mg LILETTA®
levonorgestrel-releasing intrauterine system device insertion
It is the look of horror on my grandmother's face when my lips
turned purple as metal traveled within me
It is the bottle of Sertraline they gave me when the synthetic
hormones made me want to die
It is the false relief I felt when they finally took it out but insisted that
the problem was me
It is the window that I saw when the world began to grow back green
CLICK image to enlarge
About Em
Emily (Em) Mai Chmiel is a twenty-one-year-old photographer, writer, and creator based in NYC. Her work explores the intersections of politics, art, culture, and community in a digitally oriented-age inundated by consumerism. She is a soon-to-be Columbia University graduate and desperately hopes you will not ask what she is doing next.
She is half-Vietnamese American and was born in Wilmington, Delaware.
To see more, please visit emchmiel.com
Presented by BKC & ASMP NY, The Bridge is a groundbreaking 16-week mentorship program for 18-26 year old emerging photographers and creative artists. To learn more about The Bridge, CLICK HERE.