Maybe to be a woman is to be hollowed out – or maybe to be a woman is to sing.”
Through her raw and poetic lens, F. Bessma Rhea presents Gutter Duchess, a deeply personal photographic series exploring the dualities of womanhood — fragility and strength, silence and voice, vulnerability and power.
The series follows the artist herself and the significant women in her life, each portrait resonating with emotional honesty and magnetic presence. Within these images lies a brutal tenderness — a confrontation with identity, legacy, and the complex beauty of emerging womanhood.
Gutter Duchess is ultimately a celebration of matriarchal love and resilience. It embraces the contradictions that define the feminine experience — what is hidden and what is revealed, what is lost and what is fiercely reclaimed.
Through powerful imagery and intimate storytelling, Rhea crafts a visual manifesto on becoming, belonging, and the enduring power of women bound by love.
Discover the solo exhibition here
