About this project
In this day and age of social media overload, Instagram scrolling for the sake of scrolling, and the constant barrage of things you should buy, be, go, eat, etc. I'd like to bring it back to the basics of human emotion; Of trying to connect people and feelings. Of trying to raise awareness about grief.
My mother was murdered in 2005 and I still remember the isolation, the darkness, the extreme loneliness I felt during that time of mourning. I felt like nobody understood, nobody could make me feel better, there was nothing anybody could say that took away the pain. I truly felt like I entered into some weird secret club that only the people who lost someone dear to them could understand. Before October 15, 2005, I was on the other side. In one second, I joined the club that I never asked to be in. The only saving grace of being part of this club was that others inside knew how I was feeling.
I'm embarking on this project to raise awareness of grief. That no matter how short or long it has been since you've lost someone you love, there is still a place held in your heart for them. For myself it's been 13 years and countless hours of therapy since I lost my mom, but there's still more space for healing and connection I haven't tapped into yet. This is not a go to place to find grief support, I am certainly no therapist, it's just a place for people to connect, to feel each other's emotions, to communicate with the person you've lost in a way you may not have done before.
The Concept:
Write a letter to someone you have lost. This letter can be anything you want to say to that person:
If you're blank, here are some pointers:
Something you wished you said when they were still alive
Something you want to update them about since they passed
A letter of gratitude and love
A letter of apology
A letter as if they were still alive
A letter solely of one particular memory
These are just examples, the letter can be anything at all. Sometimes it helps to simply start writing and see what comes out.
While you are reading this letter I will be photographing you as well as recording your voice reading the letter.
About marisa
I am an interiors/lifestyle/product and portrait photographer living in Venice Beach, CA with my husband, 6 year old twins and 2 siamese cats. I love traveling, being in nature and the open road with my family. You can find my photography work at Marisa Vitale Photography
The point
I know its scary and vulnerable to talk about your pain and your grief, but think about when you were in the throes of darkness and how much you wished someone understood how you felt. How even years later you can be brought to tears thinking about the person you lost.
Isn’t the point of this life to connect with other people and spread our love and interconnectedness?
Let's get vulnerable, because the great Dr. Brene Brown says,
“we associate vulnerability with emotions we want to avoid such as fear, shame, and uncertainty. Yet we too often lose sight of the fact that vulnerability is also the birthplace of joy, belonging, creativity, authenticity, and love.”