my patient at home, Toronto, by My Le Nguyen

The work of My Le Nguyen has stayed with me since i first saw it, and it still retains that initial punch in the gut. She says that her background in and practice as a registered nurse informs her photography, and vice verse. This may explain the sense i get of emotional impact coupled with practical clinicality (if that is a word).
This particular photograph excites me for it’s simplicity, that every element is in it’s place for a reason…the patient, who we cannot help but relate to, seeming to mutely slide off the page…the pillows creating waves for him to drown in as well as extending into the viewer’s space…the “lifeline” connecting him/us to the kneeling saint, whose ornate frame mirrors the patient’s head…and that light switch! Okay, sorry, i’ll stop the dissection. In the much less analytical words of My Le:

I am drawn to subject matters that are immediately surrounding me, physically and emotionally, such as my family, Vietnam, and the patients I care for when I go to work. I’m attracted to ordinary everyday things, and how the ordinary can speaks loudly about itself and about our relationship with life. I like creating tension, mystery, and exploring isolation, hope, and the oddities in life….
I now feel that nursing drives my knowledge in photography; and photography drives my knowledge in nursing. These two, in turn give me knowledge of life and and how to live it, which I think works out pretty well.

Indeed. Thanks My Le!

Okay, now, i’m not going to tell you again! Enter it!

This entry was posted on Friday, November 9th, 2007 at 1:39 pm by niki and is filed under Contenders, Fall '07 Hot Shots. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.