Who are you writing to? Who is behind this project?

I'm trans, male, grew up in Canada, live in Berlin Germany. Here I go by 'tyron', the project's name, for a level of professional distance in a very public world. I transitioned close to 30 years ago, have lived through various waves of acceptance and exclusion. Personal choice around discretion and privacy is something I value, very few of us actually exist - or fit- in a bubble. 

How did I get into this work? 

Through some tough transition years, I landed in another country, and soon spiralled into precarious existence and survival mode. With no work permit, no way to study or receive official training, and no way to leave .. I found myself in the unique position of having time and the drive to figure out how to create the prosthesis that so many I cared about were dreaming of.

I’ve always been good at making things and interested in how things work.

My 25+ years of education and training specifically for these prosthetics is self-coordinated through books, articles, videos, courses and instruction from individual experts, paired with dedicated - possibly obsessive- experimentation with materials and design, all in communication with the many people around the world who have been involved in and supporting this project, in varying intensities, some since the start. 

I make each prosthesis myself by hand, and I designed each individual part of each prosthesis. I design and produce each form, and a lot of the tools and methods I use to make each part. I work in a small workshop. 

For years I had a 10 month wait-list of orders that I would close and open just to re-fill the 10 months. I never once took one of the many offers of more payment for a faster order. I'm painfully aware that there's a belief out there that these prostheses are priced high...  This project is not a money fame or status maker! But - I've felt very creative and free and love that I've been able to do it full time. 

Ironically, this work is thanks to internet. Internet was communication, connection for people who were once isolated. It's morphed into a place where "community collaboration" is understood as an advertising slogan, "dedication to a goal" is understood as a background story for branding. It's not currently a space I feel comfortable in, but I'm pushing through for whatever's coming next. 
 

When you write, it’s me who reads and responds. 

Language

My first language is English, I’ve lived primarily in German for many years. My French is limited. When I write in French, I often use an online translator to help me be as clear as I can.

Name
The projects name ‚tyron‘ comes from a plastic dinosaur I’ve had for a long time - a tyrannosaurus rex, nothing more than that. 

Terms

When I say I am male and trans what I mean is:

I identify with the term "trans" due to my sex being different than that what was assigned to me at birth, my life being greatly influenced by that fact, and feeling kin to others who experience similar. My transition was about relationship to body. Female didn't "fit", male does.