Virtual Altar

This photo series is about experiencing loss. 2020 has been a hard year, full of loss. Walking around Humboldt Park there are things I notice on my daily four mile walk around the neighborhood. One thing I have noticed for years and still today are these make shift altars/ memorials on the ground throughout the neighborhood. The altar is made up of empty liquor bottles and candles, usually signifying a victim of gun violence, a street murder. Recently while walking around I have noticed new make shift altars in windows for celebration or protest. The other day I saw a 2020 graduate photograph sitting in the window, proudly displayed along with the diploma. I really value how much people care for publicly sharing the grief, loss and even in such hard times, a celebration. Seeing these shrines/ memorials inspired me to create a Virtual Altar. I am using photographic elements, new and old to build my own Virtual Altar. Early in the Pandemic I lost my grandmother. I was unable to attend her funeral due to restrictions put in place because of COVID. It was a great sense of loss during such dark times.