I Am Tim
I Am Tim is a large-scale project over my dad’s experience with cancer and how it has changed him. This series was created to help me really introduce myself to my dad and vice versa, and also to be able to spend some time together while we have it.
The series was created on Red River Ultra Pro Satin paper with an inkjet printer. I Am Tim was done in black and white to add to the somber feeling of the series and draw attention to what is happening in the images rather than the colors and small details. I wanted this project to really capture my father’s emotions and the experiences he is having day to day with or without someone else. He spends a lot of time alone with his thoughts and his brain plays tricks on him. This causes him to be very confused and scared most of the day. He has also been experiencing a lot of nightmares and panic attacks that lead to him calling me and my mother in the middle of the night begging us to help him. This terrible experience is something he is having a hard time coping with and so am I. I always want to help him more than I can, and I feel like I am stuck in a place where all I can do is watch.
These ideas and experiences are shown through the black and white color palette, as well as, the embossed words that are quotes from my father. This series is meant to be raw and emotional and to cause discomfort in the viewer. When the viewer gets close enough to really see the work and the embossed words on it, then they will be close enough to imagine the pain and discomfort my father feels. Only then will they be able to really start to understand his experience.
The series was created on Red River Ultra Pro Satin paper with an inkjet printer. I Am Tim was done in black and white to add to the somber feeling of the series and draw attention to what is happening in the images rather than the colors and small details. I wanted this project to really capture my father’s emotions and the experiences he is having day to day with or without someone else. He spends a lot of time alone with his thoughts and his brain plays tricks on him. This causes him to be very confused and scared most of the day. He has also been experiencing a lot of nightmares and panic attacks that lead to him calling me and my mother in the middle of the night begging us to help him. This terrible experience is something he is having a hard time coping with and so am I. I always want to help him more than I can, and I feel like I am stuck in a place where all I can do is watch.
These ideas and experiences are shown through the black and white color palette, as well as, the embossed words that are quotes from my father. This series is meant to be raw and emotional and to cause discomfort in the viewer. When the viewer gets close enough to really see the work and the embossed words on it, then they will be close enough to imagine the pain and discomfort my father feels. Only then will they be able to really start to understand his experience.