Description

Lustrous in red and impossibly poised on a gold-tipped phallic heel, Gilded Burden confronts the viewer with the seductive performance of femininity as both spectacle and subjugation. The shoe, a classic symbol of glamour and desire, is held aloft by an unmistakable emblem of masculinity coated in gold to suggest value, prestige, or reward. 

But beneath the shine lies a provocation: What does it mean to stand on a system that fetishizes, supports, and controls all at once? Gilded Burden challenges the conflation of power and beauty, questioning how much of femininity is shaped in response to male desire, and how often empowerment is merely repackaged compliance just shinier. 

This is not a pedestal. It’s a pressure point.