Monday, August 23, 2004
UCLA
Twice-Taken Pictures Opens Aug. 23
Date: August 11, 2000
Contact: Amy Hood ( ahood@arts.ucla.edu )
Phone: 310-825-4288
It has been said that history is , not was. In a thoughtful exhibition comprised of portraits of individuals holding the treasured images of family members accompanied by personal narratives, photographer Darryl Sivad captures a present nurtured by the past. Documenting 31 persons from diverse backgrounds and beliefs, "Twice Taken Pictures: Ancestral Portraits by Darryl Sivad," on view at the UCLA Fowler Museum of Cultural History beginning Aug. 23 through Feb. 11, 2001, reveals the value that these cherished heirlooms have in their owners' lives. Touching on notions of identity and kinship, loss and immortality, this series explores the profound ties sustained between descendants and ancestors, forming a visual genealogy of those pictured. "I refer to these 'twice taken pictures' as 'double exposures,'" writes Sivad. "Initially, I was concerned with the quality of some of the ancestral portraits. Slowly I began to realize that the physical condition of these images wasn't so important. It was the stories they told and the way that the descendants touched, held, and posed with these familial treasures that was important. Photographing descendants with portraits of ancestors became my way of documenting generations." In this deeply personal documentation of family lineage, these compelling black-and-white portraits reveal the profound meanings family photos can have in our lives. With each portrait, came an outpouring of memories emotional recollections, reconstructed histories, and poignant anecdotes about beloved family members. One such image depicts Vera Purdy holding a photograph of her mother, who died when she was a young child. Sivad's portrait takes on greater significance when it becomes the first-ever image of Ms. Purdy and her mother together. In another photograph, young brothers Ameer Arnett Brown, Jr. and Paul Anthony Brown smile playfully at the camera as does their grandmother in the previously taken portrait. Along with the stories and biographies that accompany these representations, their intriguing compositions create powerful moments in each frame. | |
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