The project with Martha Bouke (2002-2011) documents my long-term collaboration with an 80-year-old grandfather and Holocaust survivor who has assumed a younger feminine persona, in both body and mind. By wearing a non-expressive female mask (or a veil that covers most of the face), a wig and tight sexy outfits, Martha challenges the conventional perception of an elderly man and defies the Jewish trauma myth by claiming that she is much younger, carefree and has different interests. In the video, she explains that since she was born after the holocaust, her interests are in what is happening now and not what happened to “her brother” in the holocaust. Martha represents a radical departure from conventional parameters. She doesn't belong to any gender or age definition, even the transexuals rejected her as not being "one of them," or "real" enough. She is not totally defined or recognized. Her persona exhibits so much contradiction that it defies the viewer’s ability to create a concrete assessment of who it is and her intentions.
The CDA's archives are operating with the support of the Ostrovsky Family Fund and Artis
