gelatin silver print
11″ x 17″
given sun in vessels reflects on family history, inherited knowledge, and the ways care is carried through material traditions. The work draws inspiration from my grandfather and his family, who worked as tailors in Bonn, Germany before World War II. Grids, stitching, fabric, and repetition reference the precision, discipline, and skill required of tailoring, while also suggesting systems of memory, order, and accumulation. The vessel serves as a recurring form throughout the series. Rather than containing food or water, these vessels are filled with fabric, suggesting another form of sustenance. Cloth becomes a carrier of labor, protection, memory, and connection across generations. The work considers how care can be expressed through making, mending, and the quiet transmission of knowledge from one generation to the next. Rendered in black and white, the series echoes the family photographs through which much of this history has been remembered. The limited palette shows distance and time while emphasizing texture, structure, and form.
