When I got back from Chicago in March and started going through all my images I came across this photograph above. At first glance I saw how the elements in the frame were interesting, and I understood how I was drawn to make the exposure. But when I zoomed in, I immediately realized that the little girl in the stroller looked so similar to my daughter Alyssa at that age and that reminded me how often we used to take her to Chicago for vacations. The little girl in the stroller is so alert to the world around her just like Alyssa was at that age. I am assuming it was seeing the stuffed animal in the girl’s arm that really made the connection. The girl is clutching it in such a protective way, you know how special the toy is for her. My daughter was exactly the same way, and that period of innocence was so wonderful. The image brought to mind how much a parent tries and protect their children when they are young and also how in today’s society I still worry about my adult children’s safety as crime and world tensions rise. Viewing this image became an incredibly intense experience rather quickly as I realized everything I just mentioned, and I was not expecting that. The experience motivated me to revisit my negatives and see what images I had of Alyssa when we would take her Chicago when she was young. Below is one of my Chicago photographs from 25 years ago when Alyssa two years old.
CHI-171 #29 5-03-99 - Alyssa Valentine at the Hancock Tower
I don’t know if there is too much more to say about these images or the recent experience. I don’t want to make it into something more than it is, but I thought there was value in sharing how I felt with people interested in my work or just interested a photographer’s process. I think it not only gives insight to the fact I am an admitted romantic, but it also highlights how a photograph can evoke strong emotions from the image maker even when that was not the original intent. I know everyone brings their own experiences with them when they view an image and that people often have different responses to images based on their own prior experiences. I also want to point out that images can become more important overtime and develop new layers of meaning particularly if public opinion of the subject matter changes or if the subject matter documents change in and of itself. Viewers opinions can also change over time as they have different experiences with the same image. These are all some of the reasons why I don’t delete image files or purge old negatives.
