Emily Rosser - You are an Island
Emily Rosser - You are an Island
Published 2022 by des pair books
Review by Timothy LeBlanc
It is only June and yet the one of the most impactful photo books of the year has already come out. You are an Island by the wonderful photographer Emily Rosser sees the artist perfectly interweave pieces of her father with pieces of herself. Rosser has done this by sharing her photographs, snippets of her life in 2020 and 2021 while, as she puts it, “… [she] started the process of becoming myself”, alongside pieces from her father’s large personal archives. The inclusions from this collected memory are made up of a few snapshots and poetry, which is worthy of its own book.
This gives one a view of the artist and glimpses of her father in a way that perfectly describes the role, of shaping one’s identity this relationship can have. Rosser’s photographs are touching meditations that root their power in finding one’s self in nature. This environment being paired with the poetics of her father’s work and her own titling create an almost transcendentalist experience. The trees, water, sand are all as much places to reflect, as they are to escape.
You are an Island has its largest impact in the fact that it allows one into the artist while pushing one to contemplate the work’s message in their own life. We are in fact all islands. The title insists it upon the reader as fact. That does not mean one is alone, Rosser shows that the grains of sand making up our banks are made of time and memory. The forests have sprouted from seeds planted at various times in our lives. We must work to shape and become ourselves, but we cannot forget what we choose to build upon or that which we break away from.
Emily Rosser, Self Portrait 2, 2021
Image Courtesy Artist and Despair Books
The book itself was published by Des Pair Books to accompany an excellent exhibition held at the bookshop, of the work including the typescript poetry. While many times a catalog of a show presents a lesser version, this is the rare case where the exact opposite is true. Through the book’s ability to expand on the subject presented, a very good small exhibition turns into an expansive yet intimate experience. It is available here and is highly recommended.