1978
A Christmas Gift
From Those Hands
In the year of 1978, my beautiful grandmother Annie Ruth Pringle, gifted my mother with a One Step Close Up Polaroid Instant Camera for Christmas.
1979
Cousin Ruby Christmas Morning
Christmas Morning
With a newly gifted polaroid camera, my mother began documenting family events. My cousin Ruby Christmas morning December 21st, 1979.
1980
A Rare Snow Day
Snow Day In Logtown
My mother captured a rare Christmas day in Logtown, GA in the year of 1980. My grandmother’s car beautifully buried in the morning snow.
1982
A Christmas Doll
A New Doll
My mother documented a sweet Christmas morning where one of my family members was gifted a new doll.
1982
Christmas Dinner in Logtown, GA
A Christmas Spread
A Christmas spread in Logtown, GA in 1982. Photographed by my mother.
1991
A Portrait of Myself
“Paige”
A portrait of myself at 1 and half years old, taken by mother.
1996
Thanksgiving at Aunt Dora’s
Aunt Dora’s
Thanksgiving Day at Aunt Dora’s house in 1996.
1996
A Tribute to Suga Putt
Suga Putt and JJ
My cousin Suga Putt, who has since passed away, and JJ at my aunt Dora’s house in Logtown, Georgia on Thanksgiving Day.
1996
Cousins on Thanksgiving Day
Kornisha and Audrey
My cousins Kornisha and Audrey at my Aunt Dora’s house in Logtown, Georgia on Thanksgiving Day.
1996
Auntie Pip and Linda on Thanksgiving Day
Aunt Pip and Linda
My great aunt Pip who has since passed away, and my cousin Linda. Photographed by my mother on Thanksgiving Day in Logtown, Georgia, 1996.
1996
Terry and Teressa’s Family
Terry and Teressa
A portrait of my cousins taken by my mother on Thanksgiving Day in Logtown, Georgia.
2021
My Mother Passes Down Polaroid Camera to Me
From Those Hands
My mother passes down the Polaroid camera that was given to her by my grandmother on Christmas Day, to me. I now begin the journey of documenting time and space with this camera.
2021
A Birthday Trip to New York
Fort Greene, Brooklyn
I went on a trip to New York for my 31st birthday. For my birthday, I was on my way to a dance party in Fort Greene, Brooklyn, when I came across this couple on a motorbike.
2022
My First Zulu Parade
Zulu Parade
In 2022, I moved to New Orleans and brought my mother’s Polaroid camera with me to document my time and experience of the culture there. On this day, I experienced my first Zulu parade.
2022
Mother In Law’s Bar, New Orleans, LA
Behind Mother In Law’s
After a second line parade, some members of the social club relax in the back of Mother In Law’s Bar.
2022
A Game of Hopscotch Behind Mother In Law’s Lounge
Babydolls at Mother In Law’s
The Babydolls of New Orleans playing a game of hopscotch behind Mother In Law’s Lounge in New Orleans.
2022
New Orleans, LA
Saxophone Player French Quarter
A saxophone player in the French Quarter mysteriously covered in New Orleans, LA.
2022
A Trip to The Sea Islands for Guardian Magazine
Sapelo Island
For The Guardian Magazine, I went on assignment to the Sea Islands for an article titled “The Gullah Geechee, A Fight For A Legacy After Slavery”.
I traveled to different sea islands, documenting the Gullah Geechee’s fight to retain their culture and legacy. Photographed is a descendant’s home on Sapelo Island off the coast of Georgia.
2023
A Mardi Gras Morning
Mystic Seven Sisters
The Mystic Seven sisters cleansing the streets on Mardi Gras day in New Orleans, Louisiana.
March 30, 2023
Awarded a residency and fellowship
Hambidge Center Fellowship
I was eventually awarded a residency and distinguished fellowship at the Hambidge Center in the Appalachian mountains in North Georgia. I used this time to organize my mother’s archive and document the space and landscapes around the center.
2023
My Cousin’s Living Room
Narissa’s Living Room
My cousin Narissa’s living room in Logtown, GA.
Her home was passed down to her from her grandmother, and she kept all of the original furniture.
2024
Grandma’s House Tucked Away
Grandma’s House
My grandmother’s house in Logtown, GA.
2025
A House of History
Pip’s Store
My great aunt Pip’s old storefront in my family town of Logtown, Georgia. She passed away 4 years ago.
She used to sell Coke, water, and ice cream from this store and everyone in the neighborhood would come by for a snack or drink.
2025
A Family Heirloom
Great Grandma’s Quilt
My great grandmother’s quilt that was given to my mother. I never got to meet my grandmother, but having this physical heirloom to touch brings me joy.
In the year of 1978, my grandmother gifted my mother a One Step Close Up Polaroid Instant Camera for a Christmas gift.
My mother never considered herself a photographer, or an archiver. She just wanted to be sure that our family’s special times together were documented. It was fun for her, running up to cousins, aunts, and uncles excitedly gathering them for a photograph. The beautiful thing was the instant cooperation from everyone. Whether she knew it or not, this would send my mother on the trajectory of becoming the family archivist. She brought her camera along with her to all family events, snapping precious moments between us that we now look back on with pride and joy. When my mother pulled out her Polaroid Camera, there was an understanding that this time of joy and family bonding needed to be captured, no questions asked. She became a photographer without notice, a documentarian whose enthusiasm for preserving tender moments kept our family memories alive.
There are those that have passed on, and their beautiful spirits shine through these Polaroids she took. Young babies who now scrape the ceiling. These photos are physical evidence of my lineage.
This camera has now been passed down to me, and I have continued this same tradition of chronicling moments, time, and space with this Polaroid One Step.
The photos displayed are images that I have taken with my mother’s camera, continuing her legacy of documenting time and space. Within these images, the past and present meet in a unique way. These visuals were taken between New Orleans, Louisiana, Atlanta, GA, and Logtown, GA, my mother’s hometown. Many of these images were taken while I was commissioned for different assignments across the South, including Sapelo Island and Savannah, Georgia. Being taken with a family heirloom, all of these photographs contain the spirit of my grandmother, mother, and now myself.
A true fusion of time, history, space, and energy.
