It is human nature to look into mirrors & windows. People who study their reflections gain a sense of self-worth, if they find their own images attractive. But reflections are complex, and can alter perception in many ways.

Based on many years of photographing people, Joan Rosenstein found that when someone is wearing a mask so that his or her superficial identity is concealed, that individual becomes less inhibited. In this situation, it is often possible for a truer self to be reflected, even if the individual is not wearing clothes that have been selected for self-definition.

The Urban Siren photographs are part of a larger series called URBAN NUDE REFLECTIONS, which focuses on relationships between the masked & unmasked nude and reflective elements found in the urban landscape. In Urban Sirens, Rosenstein digitally combined photographs which she shot of the figure in her Bethesda studio with black & white photographs which she shot of reflective fabricated steel surfaces, windows & mirrors in Seattle, Washington. The resulting complex reflections reveal a mosaic of visual contradictions of the human condition.