Madison Trotman is an interdisciplinary artist based in Baltimore, MD. She is working with photography and sound design in conjunction with one another to immerse the viewer into specific environments. She is currently pursuing a BFA in Photography from the Maryland Institute College of Art, anticipating to graduate in May 2019. Madison has shown in several group shows at MICA and Stevenson University. She is also a member of the Wilgus Gallery, a student led gallery at MICA. Heavily influenced by filmmakers and musicians, Madison’s art is concerned with identity and place. Recently, she’s been wrestling with the idea of home since her mother passed. These photographs and sound pieces serve as reflections of her life in a transitory state as her relationship to home changes.
Almost Home
Almost Home is a project about the changing of my relationship with home since my mother died. The photographs have been taken in Maryland, Alabama, and Tennessee — all places I have called my home — and are a form of connection between my relationship with the land and my relationship with my mother. I am constantly asking myself what “home” means to me. Is it a connection to a specific place or is it a connection to a person? I began this project photographing places in rural Maryland that reminded me of my home in the south. This idea that I could transfer nostalgia and memories of my childhood in Alabama onto places I was just beginning to explore really appealed to me. My connection to the rural American landscape and the quietness of the environment allowed me to reminisce on my past and my home in Alabama and Tennessee. During the process of photographing for this project, I returned home because my mother became ill and later passed away. All of the sudden, the meaning of home was different. Home had been my connection to the environment and now it was my connection to my mother. I became so harshly aware that the places I’d been photographing were so similar to the farm my family has had for generations — the place my mother grew up — and the place where she was buried. This project has really allowed me explore my family's history and familial connections to the land. It is filled with grief but also great inspiration for more work to come.
To view more of Madison Trotman’s work please visit her website.