Getting To Know Sylvia and Shelby Reaves

Upon beginning this project with the residents at the Mayflower, I was not sure what to expect. I did not know what to expect from my residents, from myself, how the project would take shape, etc. I thought it would be interesting but didn't really think about it beyond that. However, meeting Shelby and Sylvia Reaves has been a delightful and fascinating experience. They have lived such a full life together. It's a beautiful thing. Alexis and I went with them yesterday to their storage unit across town where they keep a myriad of tubs just full of photo albums full of pictures of their long, full life. Other's photographs don't often necessarily speak to a viewer, but I was absolutely fascinated by all of the pictures of the places they have been, and, now that I have gotten to know them better as people, I found myself being more and more interested in their personal photographs as well. Pictures of their grandchildren, for instance, are simply adorable. It has been really nice getting to know this couple with a completely different perspective on life. They have lived much of theirs already, they have seen the entire world (something I personally want to do, so I am very envious - this may explain why I am so interested in their photographs), they are happy to exist as they are.

These are just two pictures from their travels. I cannot remember where the first one is from, but the second is of a glacier in Alaska, a place I've always wanted to go, and something I have never seen before. They have hundreds of breathtaking photographs from all over the world; they lived in Hong Kong for a decade, raising their children there.
Looking at their pictures this past week, I felt a little bit like Barry Mauer and his found photographs. Obviously I know the Reaves and I know the pictures are of their family, but in a lot of ways I do not know much about their photographs - they did not tell me their entire life story - I had to make guesses about many photographs and what they meant or how important they were. In that way I felt like I was piecing together their whole life from this series of images, and that was very interesting for me. Like we always talk about, a picture is just one second in time, with a definite border and definition, and may not describe at all what the viewer thinks it does. However, with a lifetime of albums, you can still get a feel for what their existence was like. It is hard, though, to know the emotions of the individuals since many of the pictures are posed rather than candid. I'm rambling. The point is, their existence fascinates me, and I love being a part of their lives, even if it is for just a little while. They are very kind people, and I am glad to get to know them.