This article provides a miniature overview of the work made by artist Sophie Calle during the 1980s and 1990s, focusing particularly on her installation piece The Birthday Ceremony. Between the years 1980 and 1993, Calle collated the items she received as birthday gifts during that time and incorporated them into this installation. As such, she uses the piece to ruminate on how her life and artistic practice are intertwined, while also reflecting on the themes of voyeurism, ritual, and private vs. public self that permeates

her oeuvre as a whole.