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si je meurs / if I die
A series of archival pigment prints in editions of five at 20"x 30" and of three at 30" x 40."
The photographs of si je meurs /if I die explore the fragile space between absence and presence, and continue the
conversation I’ve had with my mother, Janine Janowski, and my family, through my work, over 30 years.
Moving through a subjective, diasporic space infused with a sense memory of loss, the photos evolved naturally as we
confronted the most human of destinies.
--As if I could ever get used to it
--As if the picture would somehow wish it away…
In the process, I discover, examine and reconfigure an archive that brings the personal and the collective together. The
resulting photographs pay homage to our relationship and allude to the legacy that she left behind. As in earlier series, I construct my own sense of identity, and weave a dialogue between the personal and intimate, individual story that gives perspective to the historically-significant, public narrative of Janine’s life as a cultural promoter in El Salvador during the civil war and its aftermath, now reactivated through my socially engaged platform of laberinto projects.
Both projects are inextricably bound: preserving her legacy in intimate and public ways reinforces my belief in the
power of art to construct a first person narrative that affirms an individual’s own history and culture, while galvanizing
communities with a sense of collective identity.
A series of archival pigment prints in editions of five at 20"x 30" and of three at 30" x 40."
The photographs of si je meurs /if I die explore the fragile space between absence and presence, and continue the
conversation I’ve had with my mother, Janine Janowski, and my family, through my work, over 30 years.
Moving through a subjective, diasporic space infused with a sense memory of loss, the photos evolved naturally as we
confronted the most human of destinies.
--As if I could ever get used to it
--As if the picture would somehow wish it away…
In the process, I discover, examine and reconfigure an archive that brings the personal and the collective together. The
resulting photographs pay homage to our relationship and allude to the legacy that she left behind. As in earlier series, I construct my own sense of identity, and weave a dialogue between the personal and intimate, individual story that gives perspective to the historically-significant, public narrative of Janine’s life as a cultural promoter in El Salvador during the civil war and its aftermath, now reactivated through my socially engaged platform of laberinto projects.
Both projects are inextricably bound: preserving her legacy in intimate and public ways reinforces my belief in the
power of art to construct a first person narrative that affirms an individual’s own history and culture, while galvanizing
communities with a sense of collective identity.
