I am always so shocked by what people choose to share with me. I’m not sure that put in the reverse situation that I would be as brave to share such intimate parts of myself to someone holding a camera…putting my likeness in the hands of someone else, trusting them to really see me. I will always feel grateful for that though. The pieces that people feel safe enough to allow me to know about them and then make a permanent visual representation of who they are in that moment.
Serina, is a childhood friend of my sister-in-law, who I have photographed a few times. She moved to LA a few years ago and I visited with her once when I was in California. We sat outside and ate dinner and had a few drinks while we talked about relationships and life and new places. Serina is one of those women that just exudes happiness and confidence and goofiness. Her warmth makes you feel like you have always known her, that there was a never a time when you were a stranger.
She turned 30 last year and while the world was dealing with a pandemic, Serina was also dealing with a cancer diagnosis. She reached out to me about documenting her scars and the body she was learning to forgive.
She lives in LA and I am in Chicago. We shot all these images through Facetime, in the middle of 2020, in the middle of a shit-show kind of year. When I called her to tell her about the concept for my website and if she was okay with me putting these images and her story on here, she responded with one of the most meaningful compliments, she said “Your work is so thoughtful. Everything that you post feels like it was with purpose, like there is a story. You have such a beautiful way of looking at the world.” As a photographer I can only make work that matters when I have people as brave as her that are willing to share the most vulnerable parts of themselves. Serina, thank you.
Below is the link to Serina’s full story…
