Rachel Duffy

A few years ago, I discovered a box of childhood photos in my mother’s home and didn't recognize myself in them. I became interested in exploring how remembered moments change over time. A photograph captures a moment and holds it still, but memory shifts, morphs, changes, blurs, or becomes more vivid over time. A photo helps us to recall forgotten memories, but often it does not reveal the same reality that we remember. In a single image, there can be moments of clarity and moments of ambiguity. The process of layering and withholding paint allows me to explore the way I experience these images. Bright primary colors evoke the feeling of childhood: shiny candy wrappers, plastic toys, checkered dresses hanging on a clothesline. Layers of hazy memories reveal themselves through the layers of paint. The faces are foggy, in a dreamlike state. How do I discern what is real and what is not? If it is my face looking back at me, why can’t I recognize it?