Process
Blending words, photographs, and sounds to find essence
I work with people and their stories to support healing and wholeness. Why? Intimate and nonjudgmental awareness of one’s self tends to heal the fractured parts of our self-perceptions. I believe sharing your story with loved ones through this particular artistic process can help you know, appreciate, and nurture the essence of yourself.Â
My process for creating stories begins with conversation, a recorded interview to uncover the story that most needs telling. I listen for ways to connect the story to images, sounds, colors, and music. I spend a considerable amount of time listening and re-listening to the story I have received, distilling it to what I see as its essence.
Words are always my starting point. Images come next. I have been taking photographs since my father gave me a Pentax “ME Super” 35 mm camera when I was 12 or 13 years old. My friends will attest that I am rarely without a camera in hand. I have a large collection of images that I can weave into stories. I also enjoy working with photographs from people’s own personal archives that illustrate key parts of themselves.
The result of my story process typically takes one of two forms: either an edited audio file of our conversation combined with music, or a short video layering images, sounds, music, words, and audio clips. I offer this narrative back to the teller as a reflection of what I heard in their story, a keepsake for themselves alone, or for them to share with loved ones.