Wora (My Dad)

Following my father’s passing, this October, I chose to photograph the process of traveling with my sisters to lay him to rest in his homeland of Gulu, Uganda. What began as an act of documentation gradually became a way to sit with grief, witness family, and reconnect with lineage across multiple geographies.Working between the United States, London, and Uganda, the images trace both physical passage and emotional shift. The camera became a tool for presence which I used intuitively, an approach that allowed space for quiet observation and the in-between moments that carried memory and meaning. Family played a central role in the making of this work, not only as subjects but as collaborators who encouraged documentation of the whole process.

Alongside the photographs, I incorporate archival family images translated into cyanotype prints. These layered materials speak to continuity across time, honoring who my father was and how he endures through family, land, and shared history. Being on my family’s land and immersed in cultural rituals became a site of reconciliation, where grief and identity intersected. The density of images intentionally creates a sense of overwhelm, mirroring the emotional intensity of the journey. The photographs show the presence of extended family gathered around my father and my uncle, his only remaining brother, who now lives with vascular dementia. Of eight siblings, only four remain here on earth, with my aunt assuming the role as head of the family. Overall, the work is anchored by images of family throughout the trip, emphasizing the collective nature of loss and the power of shared memory.

Two songs are played on the CD player: one from the funeral service at church and another from the period following the formal procession. In Ugandan tradition, the funeral services of a male family member is three days and follows a series of cultural protocols. Music and dance are integral to major Ugandan gatherings, including funerals and weddings, making their inclusion in this portfolio both natural and necessary. Together, the images and sounds are meant to evoke the feeling of a family album that is layered, intimate, and alive.

At its core, this portfolio is an offering. It holds space for grief without resolution, for ancestry without nostalgia, and for storytelling rooted in lived experience. Through this work, I seek to honor my father and my family during a moment of transition, creating images that carry remembrance and love.