Poignant Pics no. 20 // Diana Nicholette Jeon
Welcome to no. 20 in our series Poignant Pics where we've asked photo curators, educators, collectors, and makers to share a brief essay on a photo that has significantly changed the way they think or look at the world.
In this issue, Diana Nicholette Jeon, who recently joined One Twelve as an editor, talks about Deborah Saul’s image, holding on to what is lost, and how she felt when seeing it.
Confession Time
Deborah Saul, holding on to what is lost
Confession time. I stink at Instagram. I try to go there a couple of times a week to get inspired and look at friends’ work, but I suffer from image overload almost as soon as I get there. My brain can’t process all the imagery coming at me. I end up running away–my brain screaming, albeit silently–to safer pastures like Facebook and Twitter, where there is more text surrounding the images so my brain can function again. This is the reason you don’t see many comments from me over on IG. The same thing happens to me in game arcades. Sensory overload.
But three weeks ago while on there, I ran into this image by Deborah Saul in the sparse minutes before IG short-circuited my brain. And I fell in love. Instantly.
Maybe it’s because the tutu and the converse shoes are such an incongruous pairing. Maybe it’s because the way the bear hangs, spotlighted by a fading daylight, it appears pensive and somewhat forlorn. Maybe it’s because, in the past couple of years, there has been too much sadness in my own life. Maybe it’s because I knew of recent events in the photographer’s life. Or maybe it’s a combination of all of them. I don’t know. I don’t actually care. I only care that it touched me in deepest parts of my heart.
For me, this image incorporated all the feels. It’s precious. It’s innocent. It’s sad. It’s soulful. It’s beautiful. It’s an image I wish I made.
- Diana Nicholette Jeon
Deborah Saul “is a St. Paul based artist best known for her street, fine art, and portraiture photography. Her work has been shown at A Smith Gallery, Minneapolis Photo Center, Mobile Digital Art Summit and The Curated Fridge. Whether traveling the world or at home, Deborah can be found seeking out, connecting with, and honoring the beauty of the people, places, and spirit that surrounds her.”
Diana Nicholette Jeon is a Honolulu, HI based artist and an editor at One Twelve publications. She was awarded her MFA in Imaging and Digital Art from the University of Maryland at Baltimore County in 2006. Jeon's work has been extensively exhibited; venues include the Museo di Arte Moderna e Contemporanea, the Griffin Museum, the Honolulu Museum of Art, the Hawaii State Art Museum and the Museo de Lamego. Awards include four Hawaii SFCA Purchase Awards, the International Photo Awards, the 11th Julia Margaret Cameron award, the Pollux Award and the Mobile Photo Awards. Jeon’s art has been featured in a wide array of publications, including Artdocs, Gente di Fotografia, SHOTS Magazine, the Art Photo Index, and Lens Culture.