In my photo series, I distill grief into beauty and reimagine trans Filipinas not as objects of pity but as radiant, mythological beings. A funeral wreath looms, an ominous reminder of death. Yet it is also made of flowers, a symbol of spring, rebirth, and femininity. Through the "trans gaze," I assert trans women's identity and agency in shaping our own narratives. Each image is part of a story, ending in a defiant bloom that declares trans existence as sacred, enduring, and indelible. In the face of pain and marginalization, we continue to dream of love. That, too, is a form of resistance.
Bienyl Huelgas (b. 1998) is an emerging trans photographer from Cavite, Philippines, whose work centers on analog photography as a way to capture daily life and explore queer identity through fine art. Her work has been exhibited locally and internationally, and published in Tiga Mata, F-Stop Magazine, Lenscratch, and The Photo Review. She is currently exploring cyanotype printing, hand-sewing, gilding, and inscribing photographs to push the boundaries of the photographic form.
