Jolene Elmhirst
Process work and extension of thesis
Photography
2022
inkjet print
6 in x 19 In
extension of thesis
“ The idea behind Memento Mori is to remember that we all must die. I have created this project from a very personal place, I worked with my own children using portraits of them juxtaposed with symbolic objects that represent death and rebirth. The use of the doe skull and baby kittens is gritty and uncomfortable, yet in appearance they are beautiful, organic and unique. When I paired the still life images with the portraits of my own children I created a visual representation of the circle of life. My goal was to create a body of work that brings people to question their own ideas on facing death first hand, and to open up dialogue around the mostly unanimous fear of the unknown.”