Cristi Sara Paterson from the UK describes herself as a mother first and visual artist second. Her family life and motherhood cannot be separated from her art.
This conjunction of life experiences documented through photographs creates a portfolio of genuineness. Organic, unstaged moments translated on the film’s grain feel refreshing and vulnerable. “I turn to film photography as an antidote to the artificial perfection,” Paterson says. She catches her children and other mothers unguarded and authentic, so that these moments of genuine connections last beyond fleeting childhood.
Sensitive, lighthearted, reminiscent, nostalgic, and almost raw to the touch: these are some of the words that come to mind when describing Paterson’s work. Through an indulgent and warmhearted approach to photography, the artist evokes tender emotions of compassion. Looking at her pictures is like letting a home film of childhood memories roll in the background, projected onto a wall hit by the golden hour light of May peeking through a slightly open window.
Artist’s note:
“I am a mother, artist, and film graduate, documenting life and memory as they intersect. My practice is rooted in observation and in the choreography of domestic moments. I document what it feels like to live inside time as it moves. Working primarily on film, I’m drawn to analog photography for the way it mirrors memory, the fragility of it, and the unconscious. I have a deep fascination with the tactile rawness of analog photography.
My images often hover between documentary and dream, creating visual narratives that feel like remembering a dream or a half-forgotten feeling from childhood. Motherhood deeply informs my work as a way of seeing. I’m interested in how care and exploring how vulnerability reshape my perception. The camera becomes a witness rather than an intruder, a tool for holding what would otherwise slip away.”
Read our “Aberration” issue in full
The 31 artists featured in RAWGUE. Magazine’s 5th issue stray from the expected, taking untrodden paths, contemplating imperfection, solitude in its many forms, and the ongoing process of self-acceptance. Through shifting perspectives, their works explore what it means to look at oneself from the outside, as if through broken glass.
We’re a team of writers using our craft to spotlight art in its most honest form. RAWGUE. started as a bi-monthly editorial experiment where each issue’s theme is dictated by the submitted work, thus removing editorial bias from the equation and preserving a more raw approach. We focus on all forms of poetry: written, photographed, painted, drawn, and filmed.
