Etched In Light channels the affective energies of lie-ins, die-ins, and the historic NAMES Project AIDS Memorial Quilt. These billboards embody the presence of trans* and non-binary bodies, capturing moments of intimacy, resilience, and tender connection. The billboards represent details from Cassils's large-scale cyanotypes, which were created with the National Center for Transgender Equality and over 100 trans* artists at the National Mall in Washington, D.C., on Transgender Day of Visibility, March 31, 2024. Performers were invited to lie upon a 15 x 60-foot canvas coated in a photographic solution for 25 minutes, allowing the sun to register their exposure and water to develop a massive camera-free photographic print that emerged in real-time.

The collective body compositions interpret the themes of self-actualization and empowerment against an antagonistic political backdrop where trans* people face severe discrimination, stigma, and systemic inequality. This work continues Cassils's engagement with questions of trans* visibility: exploring abstraction as a tactic that refuses the surveilling and voyeuristic gaze leveled at trans* bodies. Simultaneously, Etched In Light creates a powerful testament to LBGTQIA+'s history, endurance, presence, and active resistance.

Etched in Light Billboard Project is part of Movements, Cassils’ solo exhibition, on view from November 15, 2024, through February 3, 2025.