Audrey Linkman's book, Photography and Death, provides a visual insight to how death was historically photographed. Image : Belinda James
Linkman writes, "The child is displayed to the world and parenthood is confirmed". This recognises the need for post death photography as to confirm identity, perhaps of the child and to recognise the mother's grieving of the loss of a child.
She explores the poses of the parents and sometimes siblings in imagery, and how photographers were warned against conveying strong emotion in portraiture. "A calm expression was indicative of self control. There is also a class distinction that middle and upper classes were not to be emotional in public and as such, women did not usually attend funerals in case they were not able to contain their sorrow.
As I research a grieving mother, I cannot comprehend the restrictions put in place by society's classes, less than 150 years ago, not just for photographs, but also for funerals. Seems absolutely ludicrous that people obeyed this rules. Not being member of the middle or upper classes, I thought back to the funeral of Princess Diana. I looked at various bits of footage and it appears that this practice still continues. Composure above transparency. It perhaps explains why Queen Victoria spent years as a recluse following the death of her Husband, Prince Albert. Linkman's book allowed me to make this connection.
Grief and bereavement has historically been done behind closed doors. However within my project, Covid lockdown's have occurred enforcing solitude of my subject. Linkman writes about the shift from public displays of grief to private ones in the individual's home in the 1900's in Britain and America. "Grief was largely indulged in private and internalised within by the individual" suggesting that prior this, emotional support came families, friends and communities during this process, then during the 21st century. Are we returning to the practices before "behind closed doors" came into vogue.
Linkman also writes about how the home we once shared with the deceased is becoming an important connection to the deceased, with the popularity with cremations. My subject places importantance on her home, even though Becca only lived there for a week. Linkman refers to how we talk to photographs of the deceased. Lighting candles on special occasions in remembrance of them. I do this, lighting candles on the deceased person's birthdays and I still speak to a photograph of my grand mother. My subject also repeats this with photographs of her daughter.
In order to retain authenticity of my project, this book gives me ideas on what images to capture. I am planning to spend Christmas with my subject and will capture images without pose. It will be a difficult time for her as it's her first Christmas without waking with her daughter's physical presence. I feel uncomfortable to capture her tears and moments without her consent and so use an iPhone for such moments to capture the truth, opposed to capturing a recreated moment. I put authenticity above image quality. I put consent and respect above all, allowing the subject to delete any images she is not happy for me to publish.