Kan jeg kysse deg?
The project was done in 2015, so it mirrors the perspective I was in at that time.
I was terrified by people I felt attracted to, and felt like I didn't get to kiss enough people because of this. But when I was doing a creative project, I felt much more brave than while just living my life. So this was my attempt to face my fear of kissing people.
I decided to stop people on the streets of Oslo that I found attractive in some way, and asked them if I could kiss them while we were being photographed by my creative partner. About half of the people I asked said yes.
What I was left with after the project, was that the absolute best part of the whole thing, was seeing the change in the people I asked - from before they knew what I was going to ask, they were pretty neutral looking in their face and body. To when I told them what the project was about, and that I wanted to kiss them, the people who said yes to this, their complete face and body opened up as if I had cracked the shell of their everyday armour.
That transformation was super beautiful, and the thing I ended up treasuring the most from this project.
Meanwhile, I'm also much more available for kissing in general. Win win!