Notes on Presence

In Notes on Presence, the protagonist observes, meets, and photographs a variety of people to explore how society—and we as individuals—view aging women. The text is accompanied by portraits of queen statues, Les Reines de France et Femmes illustres, located in the Jardin du Luxembourg in Paris. According to a French couple I met in the garden, the statues form a small matriarchy within an otherwise patriarchal city. The images of the statues from the Jardin du Luxembourg were exhibited at Cometa, Paris in October 2023, and at Au Passage, Paris in June 2025. Notes on Presence is the first publication in The Notes Series, an ongoing project exploring Generation X.