I Could Look At You All Day

I Could Look at You All Day consists of self-portraits and still lives made in Margaret Murphy’s home. The pictures visualize her interest in self-perception and self-observation as a woman in the 21st century. John Berger writes in ‘Ways of Seeing’ that a woman must simultaneously be both “the surveyor” and “the surveyed” because how she appears to those outside herself is critical to her success in life. Murphy’s photographs ask how this concept - and internalized misogyny - shapes the way we understand ourselves in the world. The color photographs’ compositions and style reflect contemporary media culture, internet aesthetics, and art history as the vehicles for philosophical questions. Through this work, Murphy invites the viewer to consider the male gaze, femininity, domesticity, the commodification of identity, and social media’s influence on photography.