A Folder is a digital talk in which the guest shares their screen to narrate a specific collection, random obsession, sustained inspiration, or longterm research found within a specific folder living on their laptop.

For the inaugural edition of A Folder, Lexie Smith unveils a collection of therapist and psychologist bio photos saved from personal and aggregate healthcare provider search websites. It is labeled on her desktop as ‘PSY PHO’.

The artist is interested in the attempted displays of empathy, compassion, security, professionalism, comfort, and intimacy found in the photographs– complex and sometimes conflicting emotions, further complicated by the medium that the subjects are using to convey them, and their invisible public audience. The collection is peppered with images of psychiatrists, too, who, unlike the other counsellors, have the ability to prescribe narcotics. What are the limitations of images to comfort and translate emotion, and what are their potential? And how does hierarchical accreditation affect our self-image and presentation? And ultimately, what are we looking for when we are looking for help?