I enter Kmart wearing jeans, a solid top, and no makeup. Enlisting the help of a (usually female) employee I invent a scenario for having my picture taken (it's for my Mother for Mothers Day, say, or my fictional marine boyfriend) and I explain that I have just $100, in the form of a Kmart gift card, to buy a special outfit to wear in the photo. Then I ask the sales associate to choose my clothing, accessories, and makeup. I purchase the items selected, go to the fitting room to put them on, seek approval from the associate, and head to the in-store Olan Mills portrait studio to have the photographer capture at least five classic poses complete with standard lighting and props. Once the pictures are shot, I return the purchased items, restoring the card to its original balance. Two weeks later the portraits are available for purchase.

The project is represented in two suites, Suite1, and, Suite2. Suite 1, consists of 9.5"x11" portrait and wallet-size photographs taken in Philadelphia PA, Anchorage AK, Long Island NY, Lawnside NJ, Plattsburgh NY, Raleigh NC, and Philadelphia PA. They were taken over the course of 1.5 years and the invented scenario for each location is different. Also in this Suite, I included a description which tells the name and guessed age of the women who assisted me. I include this because name could say something of origin and age could say something about generational standards. Suite 2 consists of five 9.5"x11" portrait sized photographs and a wallet sized sheets of one pose. Suite2 was taken over the course of one week at stores surrounding the Cincinnati area. I used the same scenario for each location; “My husband is going away on a business trip for 2 ½ months. I want him to have a picture of me when he goes.” The women who helped me were generally the same age, late 30’ s-40. The photographers were early to late 20's.