bcs's daughters

"BCSs Daughters" was created while working on the "Many a woman with One" calendar. It was born during a photo session I did with Joasia, and her daughters Marta and Milena in a small town in the north of Poland.

The BCS I was taking photos of, was supposed to stand in front of my camera with her two daughters. Neither of the girls were older than 10 when their mother had become sick. They spoke reluctantly and in short sentences about how deeply unaware they had been of the burden of the experience and how traumatic it had appeared to them after their realisation. This was an experience of fear and shame, the shame of sickness, lack of dignity, the body with its nudity and scars. The session's day was not a day to reflect on the fact that the experience of the mother could be genetically passed on to her daughters. It was the day of fun, excitement, the day of being appreciated, and a dose of potential fame. They were taking part in a professional photo-session and the result was to be published. The trauma that became the reason for this photo-session was not important in that moment. They were awaiting me impatiently, and they greeted me joyfully, helping to carry the equipment and to move furniture. They were speaking up, one over the other, talking to me about themselves. They stood in front of the camera in turn and together, posing eagerly, assuming different poses and making faces. These photos are result of that afternoon.