Julia Griswold

Moments You Missed

“Moments You Missed” is a series of photographs exploring my experience growing up with the absence of grandparents. My images are vulnerable, poignant, quiet, exploring the complexities and tensions of family. My dad’s parents didn’t accept my parents’ marriage, because my mother is Chinese, and I grew up without receiving a birthday card or even a phone call from my grandparents. In my series, I explore my biracial identity as Chinese and White, using color and objects as cultural signifiers. I staged photographs of my family and myself in scenes at my home in Massachusetts, piecing together a larger narrative. Inspired by the films of Wong Kar Wai, my images are to be read like film stills, with a story in each frame. Through this project I understand my relationship to my family, my culture, and my identity on a deeper level as I look through the lens of my camera. My series articulates the existence of what my grandparents choose to ignore.