This body of work was born from an unusual permission that allowed conventional boundaries to be crossed, uniting this family and myself in the kinship of physical expression, deep respect and love.
The unrest after the fall of communism in Romania tore apart many families, whose members were scattered throughout Europe. For this family, however, it meant years of separation. The children were in their twenties at the time. Their father and family’s main source of income had passed away leaving their mother with a meagre pension. Like many of their generation, they were forced to leave the country and emigrate to Europe in search of a better future. Although, both siblings visited home almost every year or two, their lives never quite aligned for a full family reunion, until the summer of 2018 when they embraced each other again after nearly 15 years. Nieces and nephews met their aunts and uncles for the first time, and the grandmother had her entire family gathered around the family table.
That same summer they took me in and became my family, allowing me to be part of their lives with my camera among us smiling at the opened hearts, the powerful faces and energetic bodies, trying from time to time to create a visual celebration of a potential miracle.