The Heart is a Lonely Hunter

Representation matters, there is overwhelming evidence of young people being negatively affected by negative or limited representation. Images matter. Who gets to tell whose story? I think of the enduring legacy of Edward Curtis’ photographs. Curtis was a white photographer sent out by the American government to photograph Indigenous peoples. When photographing his subjects he had them use props and falsified narratives that endure. I think about these things when it comes to selecting which images to use. I think about this because as a white, cis-gendered woman I have benefitted from our country’s systems of oppression. I’m right near the top of this pyramid of power. I constantly ask myself “Am I participating in the same ideologies I wish to criticize? “ “How do I deal with grief when it comes to my work?” “Is my work revisionist western? Post-western? Anti-western?” Answers to these questions change each time I sit down to work. What remains constant and what I believe to be true is that in accountability lies a possibility for positive change. I am deeply committed to a practice of being anti-racist, and moving the needle towards social justice.