Burned
John Brownlow
In 2001 I met a burn survivor who allowed me to photograph her. She told me that she wanted to be...See more
In 2001 I met a burn survivor who allowed me to photograph her. She told me
that she wanted to be photographed so that people could stare at her
without feeling embarrassed. It was such an extraordinary experience that a
few months later I flew to a burn conference and set up a makeshift studio
in a hotel room, and asked people to let me know if they would like their
portraits made. I was astonished at how many people did. What I learned
from this extraordinary experience was that every burn survivor has a tale
of courage to tell, and that the burns have their own eerie beauty. I also
learned that after a few hours it becomes very difficult to see the burns
anymore. When I returned and developed the photographs, I had to keep
asking my wife "does this person look burned to you?", because
they all looked quite normal to me. My only regret is that I didn't
continue with this project longer than I did, but life intervened.
(To mu surprise, this gallery was chosen as one of the top 100 links of 2006 by kottke.org)
(To mu surprise, this gallery was chosen as one of the top 100 links of 2006 by kottke.org)
