J O A N N A     G A R M O N

Performance/Walk, Photo Series & Short Film, 2024.

 

As the first person in my extended family to return to Berlin after my relatives were forced to flee in 1939, I am a bridge. The Holocaust left lasting imprints on my family— trauma which was never processed, and has been consequently passed down generationally.

 

Painting has long since been a vessel through which I have processed experiences, both consciously and subconsciously. Over time, however, painting and art-making have become increasingly burdensome, and being in Berlin has felt inexplicably oppressive at times. It sometimes feels as if I am living out a life that is not mine, living out the lives my relatives were not able to, to try to close this circle, find continuity, and bridge generations.

​

​On two blustery days of January 2024, I set out on foot and using the S- and U-Bahn to visit eight significant locations in Berlin, spanning east to west, linking my residences with those of my ancestors/relatives. I placed my largest painting as a temporary memorial, to examine through the process of walking -- tracing a map with my work --  may expand or release intergenerational dialogue. The process of being a passerby, a carrier for something much larger than myself, might actually encourage generational healing — bringing awareness and emphasis back to the homes from which my relatives were forced to leave, or from which they were deported and ultimately executed. ​

​