'The Men from Uncle' photoworks by Margaret Dawson

When Margaret Dawson’s elderly uncle lost his independence, and his identity was beginning to dissolve in dementia, he came to live with her, and she became suddenly responsible for every aspect of his care, including his appearance. Realising that she was trying to make her uncle look ‘like himself’, in other words a simulacrum, she began to consider what other ‘identities’ her uncle could assume, and together they worked to replicate a range of iconic photographic portraits (by J.M. Cameron, Nadar, Dorothea Lange, Cecil Beaton et al), each with Uncle Hugh playing the role of subject. As well as being technically outstanding tributes to her antecedents, the photographs are poignant meditations on the ephemerality of identity and the contestability of the acts of memory upon which it depends. Louise Garrett’s essay is thoughtful and interesting.

Feb 2015
>> You can view the photographs here.