Let me tell you what I wish I’d known
When I was young and dreamed of glory
You have no control
Who lives, who dies, who tells your story?
~Lyrics by Lin-Manuel Miranda from the musical “Hamilton”
By Elin Spring
Who tells your story? Our families write our origin stories, instilling an avalanche of values and beliefs before we even get a glimpse of the outside world. But as we navigate our path to adulthood, alternate realities come creeping and crashing in, frequently instigating inner turmoil and fueling clashes about expectations. The struggle for agency and acceptance feeds a fire that many artists harness to express their own stories. “Intimate Strangers” features seventeen eminent photographers who consider the far-reaching effects of our very first relationships. In riveting and emotional images, they rewrite their scripts, addressing deep-seated issues from approval and mortality to immigration, gender and race, on view at Yancey Richardson Gallery in NYC through August 18th, 2023.

“Momme” 2008 by LaToya Ruby Frazier, courtesy of the artist and Yancey Richardson Gallery, NYC.

“American Mother” 2019, by Zora J. Murff, courtesy of the artist and Yancey Richardson Gallery, NYC.
The search for oneself looms large in this exhibit, as photographers compare and contrast their identities with those of their parents. In LaToya Ruby Frazier’s literal and figurative dual self-portrait “Momme,” Zora J. Murff’s glorious “American Mother,” and Mickalene Thomas’ vibrant mother/daughter pair of mirroring odalisques, we sense affirmation while Sage Sohier’s “Bleaching Ritual” (feature image) and David Hilliard’s “Rock Bottom” are mesmerizing in their ambiguity. Larry Sultan reflects on his history and evolution in “Pictures from Home,” exploring the nuances of his parents’ carefully cultivated suburban lifestyle. Justine Kurland’s diminutive B&W studies of her mother reflect on her history in a completely different way.

Feature Image: “Bleaching Ritual, Washington, D.C.” 2003, from the series and book Witness to Beauty by Sage Sohier, courtesy of the artist and Yancey Richardson Gallery, NYC.

“Rock Bottom” 2008, by David Hilliard, courtesy of the artist and Yancey Richardson Gallery, NYC.

“Practicing Golf Swing” 1986, from the series and book Pictures from Home by Larry Sultan, courtesy of the artist and Yancey Richardson Gallery, NYC.

“Letter to My Father” 2017, digital video by Jess T. Dugan, courtesy of the artist and Yancey Richardson Gallery, NYC.
Conflicting beliefs regarding identity figure prominently in Jess T. Dugan’s “Letter to My Father,” a subdued video of still photographs with Dugan’s voiceover excavating the devastation of their rejection over identifying as queer nonbinary. Such tension is completely unmasked in D’Angelo Lovell Williams’ confrontational “Daddy Issues,” representing his fight for acceptance as a gay Black man. Leonard Suryajaya, a queer Chinese Indonesian, employs cheeky theatrical scenarios with his parents, sister and husband, encouraging dialog about bridging different life choices.

“Daddy Issues” 2019, by D’Angelo Lovell Williams, courtesy of the artist and Yancey Richardson Gallery, NYC.

“Mom and Everything She Bought in America” 2023, by Leonard Suryajaya, courtesy of the artist and Yancey Richardson Gallery, NYC.

“Coral Ridge Towers (Mom in Negligé)” 1969, printed 1994, by Marilyn Minter, courtesy of the artist and Yancey Richardson Gallery, NYC.
Some parents remain a mystery to their children. For Marilyn Minter, her mother’s drug addiction and anxiety disorder made her disheveled and homebound, secluded not only from society but also from her longing daughter. The children of immigrants can face the challenge of unlocking a past that their parents want to keep hidden. Tommy Kha’s “Headtown V” is a surrealistic delve into the realm of family myth making and “saving face,” while Jarod Lew’s veiled “Mom by Window” is an apt metaphor for her elusiveness.

“Headtown V, Whitehaven, Memphis” 2017, by Tommy Kha, courtesy of the artist and Yancey Richardson Gallery, NYC.

“Untitled (Mom by Window)” 2023, by Jarod Lew, courtesy of the artist and Yancey Richardson Gallery, NYC.

“Dad, Hampton Ponds III” 2002, from the series Family Business by Mitch Epstein, courtesy of the artist and Yancey Richardson Gallery, NYC.
Several of the artists confront mortality. A sense of unease is palpable in Richard Avedon’s seven portraits of his aged father (1969-1973), with whom he had a contentious relationship. In contrast, Mitch Epstein’s portrait of his elderly father treading in open water is an empathetic expression of vulnerability. In Deanna Dikeman’s deeply affecting slideshow “Leaving and Waving,” we follow a poignant progression of photographs made from her car as she pulls away after visiting her parents’ home. First, both parents are waving, next her baby son is in the car, then just her mother waves, eventually we see her now grown son with her mother in assisted living, and finally we see the front of her parents’ house after both parents have died. Dikeman’s portraits trace intersecting circles of life with a restraint and elegance that take my breath away.

“Leaving and Waving” 2021, slideshow from the series and book Leaving and Waving by Deanna Dikeman, courtesy of the artist and Yancey Richardson Gallery, NYC.
With compassion and grace, each of these artists tells their story: Richard Avedon, Deanna Dikeman, Jess T. Dugan, Mitch Epstein, LaToya Ruby Frazier, David Hilliard, Lisa Kereszi, Tommy Kha, Justine Kurland, Jarod Lew, Marilyn Minter, Zora J Murff, Sage Sohier, Leonard Suryajaya, Mickalene Thomas, D’Angelo Lovell Williams, and Larry Sultan.
Who tells your story?
For more information about this exhibit, go to: https://www.yanceyrichardson.com/exhibitions/intimate-strangers