For this photography project, titled EKTALURE.X, Stahel moves away from focusing on other models and instead turns the camera on himself. By using himself as the subject, a man now in his mid fifties, he confronts the idea and stigmas attached to aging and sexual objectification.
Masculinity versus femininity comes up throughout the pieces. Stahel uses props such as tires, firewood, and balloons, which are often associated with one or another gender, to experiment with female and male roles and to tell a bigger story. This is especially relevant in today’s world, as movements continue to generate new conversations around the topic of gender.
In the age of the selfie, his simple, straightforward self-portraits offer a stark contrast. Selfies represent a medium for affectation, trying to fit into an environment, and deluding one’s level of self-importance.
