Rachel Mason

Rachel Mason’s performances, sculptures, musical scores, and experimental operas frequently mix the personal with the political. Seeking to question and comingle political conflict, art, and celebrity, Mason often represents well-known political and creative figures, as in her sculpture of herself making out with George W. Bush. After 10 years of engaging with the impact of controversial world leaders, Mason shifted her focus in 2014 to artists who have inspired her. In the series Starseeds (2014), she presents a troupe of puppet-like artistic idols that range from Yayoi Kusama to Joni Mitchell to Beyoncé. She has dubbed these artists Starseeds, which means “people from another planet who come to Earth specifically to fulfill a mission,” she explains.