Artist statement: As part of an ongoing series of photographic projects focusing on various traits and subcategories of autism – often the less discussed ones, due to personal reasons i will be making microwave noises for the next three to five business days relies on firsthand experiences, close collaborations, and extensive research to represent the diversity of autistic experiences respectfully and accurately, offering a look at the lighter side of autism from within the community. The series provides an intimate look into the lives of young autistic adults through sensory seeking and special interests.

The emphasis of the project is on ‘low-support needs’ autistic people – who were previously referred to as having ‘Asperger’s’ prior to the publication of the Fifth Edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5) in 2013. My work primarily focuses on how autism presents in people assigned female at birth (girl autism), as they are statistically both under-diagnosed, and diagnosed later in life due to a high ability to hide ‘negative’ social traits (known as masking or camouflaging).