Body Clock, 2026 A Review
In an act of uncanny luck, a local mini exhibition popped up last week from a trans artist exploring their relationship with the fertility preservation pathway and HRT Limbo.
Billie Winters’ show consisted of 6 pieces of work made during their fertility preservation process that they are still undergoing. The work was produced within the span of three months and the show a month. This was something Winters’ expressed was constricting in a curatorial sense as they didn’t have adequate time to pick and choose from the pieces they had made having only made enough for the show.
A piece that really stood out to me in the show was T4T, 2026 where the artist took two mirrors and scratched into them the quote “T4T Philosophy – A freak like me lives for infinity”. Viewing this as a trans+ person I may have a different experience to someone who is not. To me, the writing stood out as a nod to our community almost as one being, like a hydra, even if one us dies we live on continuing to be just as freakish as the last. Looking into the mirror it felt as though I was stood with those who came before me and those who will come after me, reminding me to respect and adore my elder trans folk, and protect and raise up our young in the same breath.
Another being Parent Pending, 2026 which featured a chest binder with silicone breast pumps shabbily attached to the nipple area with duct tape. I use the word ‘shabbily’ literally but with adoration. Trans history is embedded in DIY from access to life saving hormones whether that’s grown in your local T-girl’s shed or sourced and taught to you by the nice bodybuilders at your local gym, to the nights and parties and socials put on behind closed doors. , 2026 felt like a question and an answer at the same time. How will I feed a baby with my body? But also, yes, my body can carry you too.
The last two pieces that I am going to talk about in this are Waiting Room, 2026 and Thoughts & Feelings, 2026. These two works felt like they directly related to the medical process of trans+ fertility and the anxieties, fears, wonders that come with this seemingly never-ending process of waiting rooms and thoughts and feelings. The first of these two pieces included a baby mobile dangling down the letters from the clinic that keep you awake at night. Strangely, even though I don’t see why they would be different, it was quite strange seeing the exact same letters on theirs as there is on mine. A reminder that we are kept alone together in this process. I wonder how many others got that letter at the same time? With the second piece of these two I enjoyed the tactile interactivity of the keychains and the nice nod to our roots with the carabiner. Two keychains that spoke to me the most were “How would I bind if I’m breastfeeding” and “Do I save up for the future daily or top surgery” and honestly, I think those words say more than I ever could here.
Thank you Billie Winters for a wonderful insight into a journey we’ve all buried.
