In 1955, New York’s MoMA opened The Family of Man, an ambitious exhibition which brought together hundreds of images by photographers around the world. It was organised by Edward Steichen, whose aim was to demonstrate “the gamut of life from birth to death” through pictures. The display toured internationally and was seen by more than 9 million visitors, and is now regarded as one of the most famous shows of all time. Perhaps most importantly, it positioned the idea of “family” as something bigger than our immediate, or biological, circles. The images showed how complex and wide-reaching the term can be – highlighting shared experiences across borders. Now, Brussels’ Hangar presents Family Stories, an exhibition that brings this same vision – of the personal becoming universal – into a contemporary context. It highlights photographers who are pushing beyond a traditional documentary approach, instead using staging or manipulation to explore themes that resonate, from motherhood to grief and reconciliation.
Featured artists include Cristóbal Ascencio (b. 1988), whose project Las Flores mueren dos veces (2021-2024) is rooted in a deeply personal, and multi-layered, experience of loss. “My father died when I was 15, but I was not told it was a suicide until I turned 30. It was then that I started to revisit the images, places and memories that were left behind.” Ascencio rifled through his family archive and visited the last garden where his father, Margarito, worked. Hangar presents the artist’s interpretations of old pictures and plants, constructed using data manipulation and photogrammetry techniques. The results have a glitch-like aesthetic. Also investigating paternal relationships is Danilo Zocatelli Cesco (b. 1989), whose series Dear Father (2023), now at Hangar, charts the artist’s journey towards connection with his parent through drag.
Family Stories also foregrounds a poignant long-term project from Deanna Dikeman (b. 1957), who, for 27 years, took photographs as she waved goodbye and drove away from her parents at their home in Sioux City, Iowa. Likewise, Francesca Hummler (b. 1997) has documented her younger sister for over thirteen years, with the dual aim of building her sibling’s self-confidence and helping her navigate her identity as a young Black girl in a German-American family. Elsewhere, Daesung Lee (b. 1975) sheds light on “the suppressed lives and quiet strength” of women in traditional Korean society, taking inspiration from his mother. “I hope to breathe life into voices that have long been silenced,” the artist says. Meanwhile, Sanne de Wilde (b. 1987) offers a new conceptual series that probes belonging, borders and systems of control.
Closing out the show are playful collages by Alma Haser (b. 1989). The artist, known for signature photo-collages, was raised in the Black Forest by a German father and an English mother. She grew up bilingual, and has long been fascinated by “the poetic absurdity of literal translations.” Everything has an ending only the sausage has two (2024) is the culmination of this interest, transforming German idioms into their English equivalents through cutting, layering and folding. The results are humorous and surreal, visualising ideas like “We are sitting beautifully in the ink” (to be in trouble) or “To have a tomcat” (to have a hangover).
Family Stories is an exhibition that, much like Steichen’s mid-20th century landmark, traverses the full scope of emotion. Viewers will feel kinship, joy and sorrow in equal measure. They may even let out a tear, or stifle a chuckle. It is a celebration of photography that reminds us of how after all these years, we are still using the camera as a means to get to the heart of what it is to be human beings, be that together or apart.
Family Stories is at Hangar, Brussels, from 23 January – 17 May.
Words: Eleanor Sutherland
Image Credits:
1. Not to take a sheet of paper in front of the mouth, 2024 © Alma Haser
2. From the series Las Flores mueren dos veces, 2021-2024 © Cristóbal Ascencio
3. Curly Permed Hair, from the series Nirvana, 2024-Ongoing © Daesung Lee
4. Das Badezimmer, 2021 © Francesca Hummler
