American Apple: Naturalization

Inspired by a conversation with my father earlier last year, American Apple is a body of work that aims to dissect the concept of the American dream. In the conversation, my father repeated he never dreamt of coming to the US, nor did he find the American Dream Appealing. Later on in the conversation, he began telling me stories of his mother. Whenever he fell ill, his only request was an American Apple because they were much bigger and sweeter than the apples native to Egypt. I responded with a laugh "You never wanted the American dream, you just wanted an Apple." Now, 20 years plus after immigrating, my father has developed a deadly allergy to Apples. Using the American Apple as a metaphor for the American Dream, along with drawing more of my father's complicated emotions with the United States, the body of work asks what happens when the Apple turns rotten, when we become poisoned by the dream? Playing with the passport photo format, "Naturalization" is an exploration of Immigration to the US. Working as the introduction to American Apple, the conversation begins with the application, identity, and what it means to become naturalized. Immigrants, First Gen, and international student, each model is interviewed about their relationship with the US, immigration, and what it means to live the "American Dream."