Marnie Smith

Limerence is a stop-motion film capturing a tender yet unsettling kiss between two girls in a park. As dandelion seeds drift between their mouths, the kiss becomes increasingly messy—almost grotesque—but never loses its softness. Their laughter and genuine affection hold the tension between beauty and discomfort, obsession and intimacy. This piece explores the desire to dissolve boundaries with another person: to be so entangled, so in love, that you might consume each other. The work plays with what we label as ‘dirty’ or ‘pure,’ challenging where we draw those lines in romantic and bodily experience.

Scratching, a friend’s bare back fills the frame—red, raised markings spell out the cryptic phrase: “his ears became as big as handlebars.” The effect mimics the look of scratched skin, though the marks have been staged. Shot vertically in a tight frame that recalls phone footage, the work feels immediate and intrusive, yet deeply considered. Her face is hidden; she’s turned away, offering only partial access. The ambiguity of the text—partially illegible—acts as a protective layer, allowing the piece to gesture toward themes of sexual violence without demanding full disclosure. There’s a voyeurs’ gaze at play, but also moments of quiet resistance: a single hand resting on her shoulder reads as either self-soothing or a subtle reclaiming of bodily autonomy. The video holds its power in what it withholds.