Cahun consciously played with masculine and feminine stereotypes to destabilize accepted gender norms. French writer and Surrealist André Breton recognized Cahun as "one of the most curious spirits of our time" in the way Cahun rejected categorization as either a woman, lesbian, or artist. Before the late-twentieth century, non-binary identities are hard to spot or understand, but Claude Cahun changed all that, creating, along with partner Marcel Moore, a subversive body of work that explored new possibilities for gender, sexuality, and personal identity. With gender playing such a huge role in how we understand ourselves in society, transgender variance is an important subject for Queer Art. Born Lucy Renee Mathilde Schwob, the French photographer, writer and political activist chose the name Claude Cahun after a number of different iterations before concluding "neuter is the only gender that always suits me". Cahun expression is camp, playful, and the posture is jaunty. Don't kiss me." This deliberately and playfully contradicts the lips drawn beneath the assertion, the hearts Cahun painted onto the leggings and cheeks, and the painted, puckered lips. Written across the artist's shirt are the words: "I am in training.
Nipples drawn on the long-sleeve top give the impression that Cahun is bare chested. Dressed as a weightlifter, Cahun holds a dumbbell. In this carefully posed Self Portrait the artist sits on a chair with legs crossed, facing the viewer.