The Memories of your Matriarch.
A working title.
Hi my name is Samantha Brooks, and I want to meet your grandmother! I’m a visual artist based out of Brooklyn NY, who specializes in documentary photography. I am currently working on a project documenting grandmothers in their homes, and conducting interviews about their lives.
In February of 2023 I lost the matriarch of my family, Judy Robinson.
In October of that same year, I traveled to Prague for a photography workshop led by documentary photographer, Barbara Peacock. While there, I found myself drawn to shooting older women, but I never questioned why. It wasn’t until I commuted several hours outside the city to meet a new friend’s grandmother, where I spent 4 full hours on google translate, laughing, and crying, and discovering our soul ties that I could recognize what was happening. I missed my grandmother, Judy. I had lost one of the most influential women in my life, and I was called to find the women that carry that same weight for others. I have pushed this project off for months now out of fear that I wouldn’t do her justice.
Then I met Margot.
While driving home from Maine after shooting some dear friends wedding, I stopped to stay the night with the very mentor that taught me in Prague not so long ago. She asked me what I was working on and when I mentioned toying with the idea of my matriarchal work- she pulled every string she had and found me Margot, a world traveling artist who lives on the most memorable house on the Biddeford Pool, who would welcome me into her home not 12 hours later. Thus, a series was born.
During our time together, I will take images of these women in their home as well as some detail shots of their environment. I will sit down and interview them about their stories. Their families, their jobs, the places they’ve lived, the people they’ve loved.
At the end I will ask them for a letter. A handwritten letter that can be written before or after our time together. This letter is one to their grand children. If they have multiple, I will ask that they either write a letter to each child individually or include a small portion of their one letter to each grand child. My hope for this project is that it brings comfort to families, sparks inspiration to grandchildren to cherish and learn the history of their grandparents, and reminds these women that their stories are valuable. My immediate goal is to make a large enough body of work to apply for grants. With grant funding, I hope to travel and expand this project to include grandmothers from across the country and around the world. This project should be rich in diversity, culture, and family histories.
All of the work I will create as well as the letters I hope to be entrusted with, the families of the matriarch will have full access to. They will be published and shared by me, and I will catalog each one with care, so that when the day comes that the grandchildren are ready- I will have images, videos, and personalized writings to gift them.
My grandmother didn’t care much for being photographed, so when I lost her I had little to no images of who she was during my lifetime. I would give anything to have something more to hold onto. I hope to deliver that service to others, and honor Judy along the way.
Ways to support the artist:
Find me a grandmother!
Unfortunately until I am able to apply for grants or gain sponsors, I will have to stay close to the North East.
While I am based in Brooklyn, NY grandmothers are a must!
2. Sponsor me to travel to your grandmother!
Are you or your grandmother interested in being involved with this project?
Put me on a plane, and find a place for me to stay so I can make it to her as soon as possible!
3. Donate to the project!
Any financial support is extremely valuable and appreciated. As the project is in the very beginning stages, I am not able to apply for many grants yet.
If you don’t have access to a grandmother and are able, help me be able to support myself while traveling to others!
If you have a grandmother or know of one that would be willing to participate in this project with me, please connect me with them now!
If I cannot make it to them right away due to finances, I will reach them as soon as the funds present themselves!
All images above are of Margot.