WINNERS
Always Aching, Sometimes Mending
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PhotographerTianyun Chen, United States
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PrizeHonorable Mention
In 2017, my family suffered a hard time after losing a loved one to illness. The unstable structure of our home eventually fell apart after the loss. Always Aching, Sometimes Mending began as a poem I wrote while studying abroad during the isolation of COVID, contemplating what home had meant for me. The poem's imagery became the basis for this photographic series, created in collaboration with my sister when we reunited after two years of physical separation. Staged yet deeply personal, these images explore the slow, delicate work of rebuilding familial bonds.
