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WORDS ANN PROCHILO
PORTRAIT OF AN ARTIST ANN PROCHILO
ANN PROCHILO IS A PHOTOGRAPHIC ARTIST BASED IN MALTA AND SAN FRANCISCO. HER NARRATIVE-DRIVEN PHOTOGRAPHS EXPLORE BELONGING, MEMORY AND CHANGE. Born into a large family in Long Island, New York, I am the
I love this parable and its reminder that essential things are all
chronological middle-child of six. My vision and voice are shaped by
around us, hidden in plain sight. This project examines what is
a boisterous hierarchy of my birth order and gender, musical theater
above and below the surface, shifting mediums and bending light.
and public service.
It seeks to illuminate the malleable foundations upon which we make meaning and take actions that impact ourselves, others, and
I am drawn to the discomfort and tension that precede transition
the environment around us.
and emergence — that moment before surrendering to sleep, or surfacing from deep waters. I focus on holding space for conflict
I use water to depict moments that precede transformation — those
and collaboration in service to creation and change. As a visual
potent and vulnerable moments before something emerges - or
artist, I see my role as that of midwife and mediator, exploring
does not. Water reveals and water hides. It points to ways in which
the 'in-between' places and the forces that shape them. Family,
we are ego-deluded and dissociated from ourselves — drawn, as to
memory, loss, identity and reconciliation are themes I use to explore
a siren’s call, to an anesthetized oblivion.
dissonance as a tool for transformation. While it is possible to correct for optical distortions caused by I believe in the power of inviting questions and critical thinking.
light passing through water, in my photography, I choose not to. I
Living in an increasingly divided world, I want to make photographs
embrace refraction, diffusion, and reflection in service to illusion,
that spark a universal experience of both the everyday and the
to the extent that dissonance is an uncomfortable, but necessary
momentous — images that ignite reflection of what is known, what
starting place for self-awareness. It is my thesis (and fervent prayer)
is unknown and the fertile ground in between.
that grappling with ambiguities is a powerful tool for awakening.
My This Is Water series explores self-awareness and its nemeses:
Just as the struggle for transformation defines my quest, it
blind certitude and unconsciousness.
defines each person’s journey between unconsciousness and self-awareness. I believe our task as human beings is to awaken
It is inspired by a story shared by David Foster Wallace in a
to ourselves and the waters in which we swim so that we may
commencement speech: “There are these two young fish swimming
choose our right action in the world. For me, that means not
along and they happen to meet an older fish swimming the other
foundering in a sea of willful ignorance or being rendered mute
way, who nods at them and says, ‘Morning, boys. How’s the water?’
by those who would drown my voice. And like our two young fish,
And the two young fish swim on for a bit, and then eventually one
it means swimming along, constantly reminding myself that
of them looks over at the other and goes, ‘What is water?’”
“this… is water.”
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