Sunday Spotlight: Annie Claflin

Project Title: Covidity 2020

Artist Statement: The Covid-19 pandemic of 2020 greatly affected my mental health in many ways, but especially in my relationship with my son. Towards the end of the year, oppressive sadness developed into a major depressive episode. To survive, I obsessively lifted my digital camera, documenting my son’s everyday activities. This soothing ritual developed in response to, and as a means to process, anxiety about my son’s well-being. The fear that my son was unwell and unsafe fueled this behavior.

I questioned my capabilities as a mother and projected my melancholy onto my son - was he depressed too? These photographs and accompanying texts of my internal monologue spawn from a mind full of delusions about his reality. They provide an alternative narrative to my son’s life. Photography and writing, this visual diary of our months in lockdown, carried me through a difficult time and continues to be an integral part of my recovery.

Bio: Annie Claflin is a photographic artist living in San Diego, California. Born in 1978 into a family of amateur photographers in Boston, Massachusetts, Claflin quickly discovered her own photographic narrative. Her artwork explores themes of family and home, often investigating their intersection with identity. Using straight photography, digital collage, and intentional camera movement, Claflin crafts artwork that invites the viewer into her inner monologue.

Annie is honored to have her work published both online and in exhibitions nationally. Currently, selections from Claflin’s “Covidity, 2020” series can be seen on the web-based Covid Pictures archive, “The Kids Are Alright?” exhibition, juried by Melanie Carvalho, featured online at Six Feet Photography, and in The Editor’s Gallery for "Focus on The Story". In the non-digital world, Claflin’s work was included in "Primary Source", an exhibit in 2020 at The Griffin Museum of Photography and The Curated Fridge's 2019 "Family Values" exhibit, juried by Ashly Stohl and David Carol of Peanut Press. She received a Certificate from The New England School of Photography, a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Photography from Massachusetts College of Art + Design, and a Master of Science in Arts Administration from Boston University.

You can find more of Annie’s work on her website.