white but not quite
White But Not Quite explores identity, marginalization, and displacement through documentation of performance via a smartphone. Grounded in Yelena’s experiences as an Eastern European navigating the dual pressures of Western and Russian colonial heritage, the project examines the fragile and conditional nature of belonging while questioning how societal narratives impose and shift the boundaries of identity. Central to the work is the symbolic use of white bread, a material rich with cultural and linguistic significance. In Black American slang, “white bread” refers to white people, evoking connotations of privilege and blandness. In Dutch, the phrase ¨wittebroodweken¨ (white bread weeks) describes the honeymoon period of a marriage, a time of indulgence and harmony. Yelena’s fascination with this symbol arose from a Dutch newspaper article titled ¨Wittebroodweken zijn over¨ (The White Bread Weeks Are Over), which critiqued the Dutch public’s waning sympathy for Ukrainian refugees. Initially welcomed, these refugees were later criticized for their high living standards and perceived lack of gratitude, failing to meet the expectation of being “miserable yet grateful.” White bread, both as an object and an idea, becomes a poignant metaphor for the malleability, disposability, and cultural framing of identity. Yelena’s identity, as someone perceived as “white but not quite,” reveals the conditional nature of whiteness. Black and brown activists often accuse her of benefiting from white privilege by passing as white or perceive her as the oppressor, while Dutch people simultaneously “other” her through latent racism, such as complimenting her on her Dutch language skills—a subtle reminder of her outsider status. Through performalist self-portraits documented with her smartphone, White But Not Quite reflects the fractured, surveilled, and performative nature of displaced identities. The project challenges viewers to confront the biases and contradictions in how society constructs, consumes, and categorizes identities, offering a critique of racial and cultural hierarchies through layered symbolism and personal narrative.
