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During the last few years, the trend of facial masks has been constantly growing in the global market. The phenomenon that is current and has flooded the Western market of the beauty industry originates from Korea and emphasizes a kind of mummification, rejuvenation, preservation of the face in order to preserve the beauty of the skin. The emphasis is of course on the female population and the eternal desire for beauty and a youthful appearance.

The price of these disposable tissues on the market varies from affordable and cheaper cotton masks to luxurious ones with extracts of gold, diamond powder, etc. in the signature of well-known cosmetic or even designer brands. In addition to the fact that this product is very interesting as a global trend, what attracted me to use it as an artistic material is the paradox of form and content. The grotesque, slightly frightening appearance of the masks, which first reminds of the masks of characters from horror films, is in total opposition to what it is and what it propagates in the service of beauty. Also, these masks share an incredible similarity with the oldest masks found in the world, specifically stone ritual masks from the Neolithic period of 7,000 BC. The plastic representation of the human head, their geometricity, abstract simplicity and grotesqueness are strikingly identical to the appearance of today's popular facial masks. Campaigns flooded with slogans like look younger - feel better advocate first of all the second skin effect on the skin. So using a peel off mask literally means peeling the skin off your face.

Once removed, the mask completely imitates "second skin" because, in addition to the facial imprint, it contains the remains of exfoliated dead skin, hair and various other impurities. In this context, each mask from the Peeled series can be said to represent my self-portrait because, in addition to all of the above, the masks also inevitably contain my DNA cells.