Unrealistic Expectations

Unrealistic Expectations explores the tension between who we are and who we think we should be. The series reflects on how childhood toys, often seen as harmless playthings, quietly shape ideas about gender, success, beauty and identity. These early influences can carry into adulthood, forming the foundations of unrealistic ideals.

In these works, LUAP places the Pink Bear in staged, stylised settings that draw from advertising, pop culture and social media. What first appears playful or aspirational gradually reveals something more fragile. The carefully constructed scenes highlight the quiet pressure to perform, to measure up, or to present a perfect version of the self.

The Pink Bear acts as both subject and observer, caught between childhood imagination and adult expectation. This series asks how much of what we believe about ourselves is inherited rather than chosen, and how we might start to question the stories we were given from the beginning.