Thunderdomesticity

Artist Klaire A. Lockheart is not handling the apocalypse well. Between the pandemic, the negative repercussions of the Trump administration, and everyday misogyny, she has had it. To combat this isolation and despair, Lockheart teamed up with photographer Aaron C. Packard to create Thunderdomesticity. This imagined wasteland is populated by warrior women who grapple with gender roles. Since most post-apocalyptic narratives frequently exclude or mistreat women, Packard and Lockheart chose to depict women protagonists. This series acknowledges Lockheart’s skills as a survivor and provides an action hero for others to identify with as they face their own obstacles. The costuming she creates references the midcentury American archetype of femininity, yet the repairs and modifications celebrate the practicality of traditional “women’s work.” To highlight the absurdity of beauty in the post-apocalypse, Packard uses an edgy fashionesque photographic style.