Liquid Love
Liquid Love examines alcoholism and it’s effects on the afflicted, their children, mothers, fathers, friends and lovers. These photographs examine and reveal the wreckage that alcoholism creates. The images and their titles are based on the actual experiences of my subjects, feelings provoked by those experiences and words uttered while in the throes of addiction. Through the use of costume, metaphor, shadow and light, I explore the psychological effects of keeping the disease secret.
Alcoholism is confounding for both the sufferer and those closest to them. Denial, control, isolation and violence are common symptoms of this family illness. Loved ones begin to question their own sanity. Shame fuels the need to keep the disease closeted. Liquid Love gives voice to those silenced by the disease while questioning how it is possible to heal from its effects when those most impacted are socially stigmatized and rendered invisible.
Artist Bio:
After an extended trip to France and
Spain, Gina decided to turn her passion for photography from hobby to
career. As a recipient of the 2012
Bernice Abbot Prize for an Emerging Photographer, Gina immersed herself in the
art and craft of photography and is a graduate of the Professional Program at
the Los Angeles Center for Photography.
Gina’s work has been
exhibited in galleries nationwide and she has work that has recently been
published in Open
to Interpretation: Love + Lust. In
addition to her portrait work, Gina is currently working on fine art series
involving social issues dear to her heart. She lives in Los Angeles with her
children and beloved pets.
Artist Statement:
Photography allows me to look deeper
Connect with people I may never have otherwise known
Ask questions
Venture down roads on to which I may have never turned
Photography allows my heart to grow bigger... allows me to see myself in others
and see in others qualities I admire and aspire to have
Images evoke memories for me and help me to seek understanding
Sometimes it’s therapy
Photography makes me think about issues relevant to the life I live today and about how choices I make affect tomorrow
Ask questions of myself I may be afraid to answer
It challenges me to question the status quo, enables me to grow and be a better person, a better mother
Photography allows me to create
I’ve always been told that creativity is for dreamers and that dreamers don’t hold real jobs or real value in life
I know that now to be false
It is my dreams that have taken me farther than my own front door
To places and to people that have opened their own doors to me and have allowed me to share in their own dreams so that I might know I am not the only one
Magic
It allows the soul to breathe
Photography is a gift
To contact Gina Valona directly:
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