Wrongly Bodied Two 

Clarissa Sligh, artist 

Women’s Studio Workshop, publisher 

ArjoWiggins, papermaker 

2004 CE, Rosendale, New York, USA  

Bound paper/handmade paper 

N7433.4.S427 W762 2004 artists book 

By intertwining two narratives—those of a white transgender man, and of a black woman and her husband seeking freedom by posing as a slave owner and his slave—Clarissa Sligh crafts a compelling story through photography, illustration, historical accounts, and first-hand interviews. The hand-sewn cover is silkscreened with illustrations evoking woodcuts of plants and topography, which continue inside on richly textured pages. The accounts of Jake, Ellen, and William alternate throughout the book, building tension as they move through their unsettling narratives. The artist is entangled in their stories as she examines her own relationship with race, gender, and identity through this tactile work with a sensitivity to material and structure that enlivens the artist's storytelling. 

Daniel Cappello