Setting out on a journey in search of the anthropologically perfect native, Hawkins appears in her video piece “Souvenir.” Enduring hardship and glory as her tourist character takes to the trail, she eventually discovers a clue that might uncover an indigenous being untouched by the modern world. However, the more she seeks out notions of pure cultural authenticity, the more they diminish with each grasp.

In her latest photographic series, “Customs,” Hawkins again takes a look at the relationship between the foreigner and native, underscoring certain behaviors as they pertain to global capitalism and ethnicity. Stepping out from behind the camera, she becomes the idealized Westerner examined in her own work. As several Nepali people direct and shoot these photographic tableaux, passersby enter into the frame and contribute unscripted responses to Hawkins’ presence. The interaction of the different participants calls into question power dynamics between the First and Third World.

The book “Stuart Hawkins: Blue Eyes” will accompany the exhibition, featuring an introduction by Joel Sternfeld and color reproductions of Hawkins’ work from 2001 to 2006.