This exclusive online display, curated by All About Photo, graces our virtual gallery throughout the month of February 2024, featuring a collection of twenty evocative photographs from the series ‘My Mother’s Tender Script’, by Asiya Al. Sharabi.
Exploring the profound narrative woven by my late mother within her unassuming phone notebook, the series delves into a life that denied her a conventional childhood. Married at the tender age of 11, widowed at 15, and remarried to my father at 17, her journey unfolds against a backdrop of adversity and early responsibilities, revealing a tale of resilience and determination.
Despite the absence of formal education, my mother discovered solace and expression in the kitchen, passionately refining her culinary skills, particularly in the art of breadmaking. The warmth of the hearth and the rhythmic kneading of dough became the backdrop for her early story.
In contrast, my father, a knowledgeable writer and journalist, led a life steeped in education and cultural experiences. His world, adorned with receptions, global travels, and literary engagements, stood in stark contrast to my mother’s. The exhibition explores the convergence of these disparate paths, as my mother meticulously maintained her phone notebook – a personal treasury of contacts and thoughts. Through fashionable attire and expressions of yearning, she sought connection, adorning her notebook with writings and drawings.
To craft “My Mother’s Tender Script”, I reimagined a black-and-white print from the late 1970s as an enlarged negative. Infusing her delicate drawings and writings seamlessly into the narrative, I employed the resino-pigmentype technique, a method invented in the mid-nineteenth century.
This creative endeavor transcends mere replication of the past; it stands as a heartfelt homage to the resilience, struggles, and enduring legacy of my mother’s indomitable spirit.
