My obsession
for photography (art) and photographs (product) began long ago. I loved seeing
the pictures and look down to the smallest detail in them, from how the person
was dressed up to the place where the photograph was taken. When I could have
all access to family photos, for me it wasn’t enough. When I travel and see
pictures which can be mine, I adopted them. Just as some people adopt children,
dogs, etc. I adopt photographs but not any photograph, only the ones I think
that are worth to have.
Today I dedicate this space and words to the people I
met, and the people in my photographs, who had never expected that someone like
me, a stranger who has no relationship with his family, would hold their
photographs.
I cringe when I think about how I witnessed the overnight
disappearance of a person’s possessions. I asked myself many times; how come an
entire life and an entire household of a person can disappear to the point of
not even exist? well it is simple really; add death plus your children plus the
objects you owned and you will get this: your children will sell what they do
not want, they will throw away what they think it’s trash, they will give away things
that are not valuable (according to them) and finally they will keep few things
... there it is ...done. All one at once your life disappears. Worst of all, a
stranger has something that belonged to you. Have you ever thought about that? To
whom would you leave your stuff if you die tomorrow?
It is true that both photographs and antiques in
general are just objects that we should not grow fond with, but it is inevitable
to think about the past of the object and the past owner.
A
piece of history that belonged to that man or that woman is what I have in my
hands,that's what I think every time I get these pictures. I wonder what these
people think of this situation; anyway, if someone had something of mine I'd
give him the courage to give it. That's why I treat these photographs as if
they were alive. Definitely I treat these objects as they have been borrowed,
that's why I take care of the photographs, they are not mine, they are
borrowed.
