As an artist and human being, I have always desired complete control over my body and the ways I present it. This created conflict after receiving my first hearing aids at four years old. Years passed, along with my hearing, and I began to wear hearing aids...then cochlear implants. Having grown up mainstream, I was grateful for this option.   Yet the appearance of hearing aids and cochlear implants have always created a disconnect. The pieces never felt like me, and I had no control over their designs. I always found myself brainstorming ways to reclaim the machinery that had become my part of me. So, in collaboration with Private Policy, we designed flexible ear jewelry to work easily with anyone wearing a hearing aid or cochlear implant! Redefining the machinery with my art replaced the rigidity with fluidity. Understanding the significance, it was only fitting to bring this project in tandem with the visuals I had only dreamt about which became my film, The Beauty of Being Dea...