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Image

Susan B. Markisz

The Road Back; Self Portrait II

Description

Maker

Susan B. Markisz (American, b. 1952)

Title

The Road Back; Self Portrait II

Year

1993

Medium

  • silver print

Materials/Techniques

Techniques

  • silver print

Materials

silver print

Dimensions

Plate 21 x 33.7 cm (8 1/4 x 13 1/4 inches); Sheet: 27.9 x 35.6 cm (11 x 14 inches)

Credit / Object Number

Credit

Gift of Susan B. Markisz

Object Number

1992.052

Type

  • Photographs

Exhibition History

Exhibition History

The Performative Self-Portrait
May 13, 2023 – Nov 12, 2023

Label copy

In this photograph, photojournalist Susan B. Markisz positions her hands on her bare chest, her elbows pointing outwards. Her expression is calm but hard to read. Beneath her splayed fingers, the faint scar of her mastectomy is visible. Markisz made this work to document her experience with breast cancer. As she explains,


Shortly after my diagnosis, I began to work on a series of self-portraits to document the emotional ramifications of the disease. Feeling the surge of adrenaline, I set out to show the world that “Hey look at me, I beat the disease and there’s a world full of beauty beyond breast cancer.” When I printed the pictures, it was like seeing myself for the first time. I didn’t see the “world full of beauty” part, only something very real which had changed my world, and lots of anger.


–Conor Moynihan, assistant curator of prints, drawings, and photographs

Recent Acquisitions in the Siskind Center
Sep 10, 1993 – Jan 09, 1994

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This object is in copyright

Tombstone

Susan B. Markisz (American, b. 1952)
The Road Back; Self Portrait II, 1993
silver print
Plate 21 x 33.7 cm (8 1/4 x 13 1/4 inches)<br>Sheet: 27.9 x 35.6 cm (11 x 14 inches)
Gift of Susan B. Markisz 1992.052

To request new photography, please send an email to imagerequest@risd.edu and include your name and the object's accession number.

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We view our online collection as a living documents, and our records are frequently revised and enhanced. If you have additional information or have spotted an error, please send feedback to curatorial@risd.edu.

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