Honoring the forgotten

“Matriarch,’’ by Wheaton Mahoney, in her series “The Forgotten,’’ at the Griffin Museum of Photography, Winchester, Mass. through Sept. 27.

The museum explains that “The Forgotten’’ “unearths the mysterious world of abandoned portrait art collected over a six-year period.

Throughout history, portraiture has held a profound significance in
immortalizing loved ones and those in power. Yet these portraits, acquired through auctions, had been
discarded and forgotten, leaving the stories of the subjects and the journey of the canvases shrouded in
mystery.

The artist’s mission is to offer these subjects a final acknowledgment by hanging them on living trees in her back woods, symbolizing the connection between earthly origins and their ultimate return as well as the metaphorical family tree. Captured over multiple years, the series reveals the passage of time through the changing of seasons while preserving the agelessness of the portraits. The artist’s titles offer yet another layer of character to each subject.


“The Forgotten’’  aims to honor those who have come before us and have slipped into obscurity.