23rd Annual Smithsonian Magazine Photo Contest Artistic
Maryam Ghasempour Siahgaldeh

In this image, an empty couch becomes a stage for memory and presence. Projected onto the wall is a photograph of my mother seated, caught in the midst of eating, while the projection is captured from my home camera. On the actual couch, a cup rests on the table and a chair sits empty, creating a layered dialogue between absence and presence, the everyday and the remembered. The work meditates on domestic life, memory, and the traces of those we carry with us, even when they are not physically present.

Photo Detail
Date Uploaded: 11.2025
Photo Location: Manhattan, Kansas, United States of America
Camera: NIKON D3300
Copyright: © Maryam Ghasempour Siahgaldeh