Photographic Negative removed from Cellulose Substrate
6 x 6 cm
Unique Object
The homes of my extended family are filled will images, tapestries and scripts from our homeland of Lebanon.
I loved to listen as Jid-dy (grandfather) told stories of how my great-grandfather came to Australia, his new life here and the family he and my Sit Sit-ty (great grandmother) created. I learned about the lives of great uncles and aunts otherwise known only through portraits in the lounge room, and never tired as these stories were told over and over again.
Like a gabbeh (carpet) in the old country that contained the stories of a woman and her family, Jid-dy wove a gabbeh for me that I could keep, expand and pass on to my own children and grandchildren. A fragile weaving that would disappear if untended.