• Finished Work
  • About
  • Tumblr
salyards_gallery
salyards_chairvista
salyards_window
salyards_portrait
salyards_eyes
salyards_tapes
salyards_thought
salyards_walkpretty
salyards_purse
salyards_porch
salyards_outside
salyards_night
salyards_makeupmirror
salyards_mirror
salyards_insulin
salyards_beauty
salyards_helmets
salyards_face
salyards_hands
salyards_crib
salyards_doctorsoffice
salyards_G&D
salyards_sleep
salyards_church
salyards_buffet
salyards_fridge
salyards_thebasement
salyards_ageless
salyards_together
salyards_americanphotomag
salyards_americanphoto2

Other projects

Warm Mineral Springs: Miracle Lake View Cape Coral: Florida's Waterfront Wonderland View Pauline Current Acquaintances View Visage Americana View
Previous Next Back to portfolio

Pauline

Pauline is my grandmother. I was seven years old when she was diagnosed with diabetes in 1989. For most of my adolescence and adulthood, I was witness to how diabetes slowly changed my grandmother’s life. Having lived by herself for the last two and a half decades of her life, her battle with diabetes was a struggle that my grandmother mostly faced alone. While my grandmother’s life changed as a result of her disease, my relationship with her changed as well.

The youthful relationship I once had with my grandmother started to transform when I began photographing her. I spent a considerable amount of time taking part in all facets of her medical activities: doctors appointments, hospital visits, medications, and injections. While I became privy to these aspects of her life amidst diabetes, I realized that my grandmother lived a completely disease-centric life. As a result of this recognition, all aspects of my grandmother’s home and objects took on new meaning. Unable to clean and care for her home, my grandmother’s possessions became covered with dust. This dust is a visible sign of the battles she faced. Resultantly, the most significant thing to come from this project has not been the images, but the adult relationship that my grandmother and I shared.

Project Info

Visit website

Awards

Images of the Year Winner American PHOTO 2008
PDN Photo Annual Selection
Doctoral Student Grant-in-Aid of Research Award

Publications

American PHOTO On Campus: 2008
American PHOTO: Jan-Feb 2008
PDN: May 2007

Exhibitions

Indiana University Art Museum
Images of the Year: Splashlight Studio NY
PDN Photo Annual Awards Gala: Capitale NY

Dates

2005-2009
© seansalyards.com LLC 2022
Use arrows for navigation