Residual memory

My parents used to mock me whenever I told them I visited some place in France, not realizing that we had visited the same place several times before during my childhood. I have always found it extremely frustrating how easily the most beautiful places, people and joyful events slip from my mind. To this day, I comfort myself with the thought that as long as I write about it or capture it on photo, there is always a way to recover the experience. Moreover, the very act of writing and photographing seems to strengthen those fragile memory traces.

Since my father is no longer around to keep any of the shared memories alive, photos feel more valuable than ever before. For this project, I picked up my parents’ oldest photo albums, finding pictures that were mostly taken by my father, none of which I had seen before.

Just like I used to trace letters at primary school to memorize their form, I started tracing the images, after which I turned them into cyanotypes. This transfer process felt like a creative collaboration, and while the images slowly reappeared on the light-sensitive paper, they found a place in my own memory.

LENSCULTURE B&W PHOTOGRAPHY AWARD 2021

“Your project definitely taps into some of the core elements of how photography has been used since its inception. And I enjoy the very personal investigation and disclosure you are offering as a point of access to the ideas and emotions you are exploring. I found myself very capable of connecting with your images as an outlet for my own experiences, losses, and desires to hold onto aspects of the past.

...I understand the apprehension and concerns about exposing work like this in a public setting. It can be very vulnerable-making. And in my estimation, it is well worth it for you to continue exploring this more personal avenue. In my book, the more intimate and personal a body of work is, the more unique and groundbreaking it stands to be...

...From an aesthetic standpoint, your photographs are stunning. I love the combination of the diffused and vintage quality of your images with the textures of the paper you are printing on. And I also find the overlay lines that you are making are very engaging and powerful...

...I find this work very impressive. And I hope to one day see the work in person. It seems inevitable that these images have what Walter Benjamin would call an “auratic” presence.

Thank you for sharing your images and wishing you the best of luck.”

— Anonymous industry professional