Introduction
This book has its origins in a box of my mother’s poetry I found in the attic when I was a young teenager, and has evolved into a dialog between our two art forms. As she foretold in her poem,” Against Loneliness—A Bequest”, her poetry not only resonated with my own way of thinking, but also gave me the idea of combining it with my photographs. My process has been to let the poems take the lead, with my photographs responding along the way. As happens so often between generations, the conversation flows, and I have enjoyed extending this silent dialog with my images. One pairing she might have especially appreciated is the photograph of her treasured finger bowls, even though her poem is the story of my breaking the eighth one. (Still Life, 1941).
The sequence of poetry follows my mother’s life from memories of her childhood on through maturity, marriage, children and struggles with breast cancer. Our shared passion is perhaps best summed up by my mother’s words: What deep compelling secret of the genes and chromosomes Has fixed this obligation for me in my mind To find words to express the inexpressible?