In 2020 my mother was diagnosed with Parkinson's Disease. It came as a shock, firstly because of the way the news was delivered, and secondly because it shattered my perception of my mother. As the reality of her diagnosis began to set in, grief moved in alongside it. In the span of an instant my mother was no longer the healthy, vibrant woman I knew her to be. Even though signs of the disease are just beginning to take hold, suddenly, and without warning, in my mind, she was now old. In all of my adulthood, I had never really taken the time to consider what it means for my mother to age. Now, ignoring the passage of time, and its effects on her body and our relationship is no longer an option. Using portraiture as a means to come to terms with all the changes that lie ahead of us, A Long Embrace, is a collaborative effort to document my mother as she sees herself. It is equal parts an effort to capture my mother as I remember her in my mind and a way for us to connect and reconcile our feelings toward one another and toward the way Parkinson's will inevitably impact her body and mind. This series is an act of celebration and of grief.
