Forgotten stories
ellis island
2024 - ongoing
Upon entering the Ellis Island Hospital, I was struck by the weight of history embedded in its crumbling walls and silent corridors. Between 1892 and 1954, over 10,000 immigrants were marked with chalk and sent here for further examination—a liminal space between arrival and acceptance, hope and uncertainty.
This series explores that threshold, drawing on both personal and collective histories. Through research, I came to see my own family story as part of this larger narrative of immigration and resilience. Using family photographs and ephemera, I created collages and diptychs that blur the lines between memory and history, past and present.
Photographed in black and white, the series evokes the haunting realities of the immigrant journey.
At its core, this is a project about remembrance.