Rita Hester's 1998 death is part of what inspired Trans Day of Remembrance which started in Boston. Hester's mother died in 2020 without knowing what happened to her daughter.
Title from artist.
Artist's Statement: In Lieu of Flowers is an ongoing series of memorial portraits of the transpeople murdered in the United States and Puerto Rico due to transphobia, state violence, and neglect. Part mourning ritual and part photograph, I use the roses from my garden and portraits primarily made by the subjects themselves to create a series of anthotypes, images created using photosensitive material from plants and the sun that cannot be fixed, therefore will inevitably fade. This process is an act of devotion and extended witnessing over the course of the days- to weeks-long exposures. When I move the prints from window to window each day to keep them in direct sunlight, I spend time looking into each person’s eyes, connecting with their joy and grieving for their absence. The sun, the source of life, cannot revive them, yet the sunlight that creates each anthotype is the same light that once illuminated each original selfie, connecting us to one another. The resulting work is an examination of community, loss, time, and the impossible effort to extend both the life of my roses and the memory of these stolen lives.
Notes (date):
Date from artist.
Notes (exhibitions):
This item was displayed in the exhibition "Revolution! 250 Years of Art and Activism in Boston," October 2025-April 2026.
IIIF Manifest