Exhibition Dates: August 11 – September 19, 2009
Closing reception for the artist: Thursday, September 17th, 5-8pm
The gallery is pleased to present “Termina”, an exhibition of work by Elizabeth Siegfried that tells the story of her diminishing family tree and contemplates the ending of one branch of Siegfried’s family lineage: her own. As this is applied ot her own family, “Termina” becomes a quintessential self-portrait.
Research shows that families in many places in the world are getting smaller. This trend carried profound socio-economic implications underscored by a powerful emotional impact. Not having children, whether or not a conscious decision, can bring with it sadness and nostalgia, perhaps guilt or regret. The reality of representing the last of the line of one’s family can be extremely poignant. Siegfried writes: “I am fortunate to have had a family whose generations have loved taking pictures, both motion and still; so when I stumbled upon a forgotten box of 16mm film I knew I had discovered something truly special.” The films which were shot between 1922 and 1945 brought three generations of the artist’s family back to life. Especially affected by the images of her great-grandmother, grandmother and mother, Siegfried transferred the films to digital media, then began examining each frame, editing them to highlight the scenes and gestures that captured the personality, character and spirit of each woman.
“Termina” consists of four grids devoted to the leading women of each generation in Siegfried’s family. The first three grids of historical imagery present her great-grandmother, grandmother and mother actively posing for the camera and caught candidly in sociable situations with family or friends. The fourth grid consists of photographs of the artist taken between 1987 and 1992 and includes three recent self-portraits. This last grid is visually different from the others as its configuration transforms into a sporadic structure between darkness and image from one frame to the next. “Termina” addresses a reality that resonates with many people today. It asks questions and provokes dialogue about the choice to bear and raise children, the future of family in both personal and universal contexts, and emotional implications of these realities. Here Siegfried’s self-portraits acknowledge her choices and engage her past generations, while contemplating the end of her family line.
