Chosen Family Portraits In Vancouver, Canada

Sarah Race and Sarah Buchanan, authors of the Chosen Family Portraits Art Project. Photo courtesy of Celebrate Queer Vancouver and Vancouver Queer Film Festival

‘Chosen Family Portraits’ is a community-based art queer project commissioned during last years Vancouver Queer Film Festival with Artists-in-Residence Sarah Race and Sarah Buchanan. The Vancouver art project runs through August 21 2011 – as a series of lamp-post installations that include a ‘Chosen Family Portrait’ image and personal quote from the featured family’s testimonial. Queer photographer Sara Race [above] made the portraits and Sarah Buchanan [above] has recorded interviews with the participants of this art project.

“We met at the Vancouver Pride Parade.”

Chosen Family Portraits #1 by Sarah Race. Press photo courtesy of Celebrate Queer Vancouver and Vancouver Queer Film Festival

“The distinction between the chosen family and the family you’re born with is a very significant difference, and has to be expressed more to the public. The way your family tree looks depends so much on the culture that you’re modeling it after.”

Chosen Family Portraits #4 by Sarah Race. Press photo courtesy of Celebrate Queer Vancouver and Vancouver Queer Film Festival

“I’m from Trinidad originally; we talk about family as in blood family mostly. That concept of chosen family I had to wrap my head around. And, meeting her… chosen family is almost not the right term, she feels like blood.”

Chosen Family Portraits #5 by Sarah Race. Press photo courtesy of Celebrate Queer Vancouver and Vancouver Queer Film Festival