Kayla Ward

As a child, I remember having dreams of a door appearing in the basement, or finding a new hiding place that had appeared at the end of the hall. Looking back, these dreams remind me of the disconnect I felt with the place that was supposed to bring me comfort. I Am Easy To Find is a series of images that investigate the impact of a turbulent familial relationship as a daughter and the fragility of my connection to domestic space. The images construct a cut-and-paste home through the act of searching, allowing for the rebuilding of self through space and objects. A honeymoon suite, a doe behind broken glass, a faux family heirloom, symbols of both delicacy and discomfort that build a broken road map to this fabricated environment. Ephemeral connections between photographs, collage, and objects allow the work to delve inside the headspace of feeling unloved, and the acts of care performed by oneself in order to find healing and comfort.

Kayla Ward is an artist and photographer, interested in ideas of truth, materiality, perception, and collective/personal memory. Her practice explores the process of mythmaking and the relationship between experience and image.