THE FAMILY PHOTO [2018]

This video explores the role of the family portrait.

 

The fundamental claim of the family portrait is that it holds proof of the happiness, intimacy and enduring relationships that only family can offer. Behind the smiles however, these portraits also offer clues into these relationships and the role of each individual within the family.

 

Moving back in with my parents recently, as an adult, I noticed my childhood family portraits hanging throughout the house. Each one was a clear reminder of my positioning as the child and them as the parent. A constant almost subliminal prompt, it became easy to again define my current self by that child I saw all around me.

 

This video positions myself within a photo of my parents, captured when I was a child. While their positions remain happily static, my role has now changed. I occupy the unfamiliar role of the animated, contemplative and unguarded sitter. As the images on the walls around me change, I break down the constraints of the traditional portrait. I reside in the moments before and after the static smile of a family photo. It is here that I am considering exactly who I was previously and what I want to be now.