Annie Flanagan

We Grew Up With Gum In Our Hair

[ EPF 2015 FINALIST ]

I first picked up my camera when I was 14 and since then my best friend Hannah has been a consistent focus for my photography. Now, nearly 15 years later, we have created a body of work that confronts the experiences we faced, both challenging and empowering, while coming of age in modern America. “We Grew Up With Gum In Our Hair” is about the various challenges youth face, especially young women, while developing a sense of self and self worth.

I did not set out to make this project. I was always collecting and documenting, not knowing why or what would come of it, and Hannah was constantly willing to being vulnerable in front of the camera. There was no deliberate intention. We just processed our experiences in a way that made sense to us.

When Hannah and I were both 20, we did not speak to or see each other for two years because Hannah was in a violent domestic relationship, and neither of us knew how to handle it. At 22 we reunited and, without hesitation, I picked up my camera and Hannah allowed me to document her recovery. Her recovery was far from immediate as she suffered from extreme PTSD. She would not sleep for days at a time and began pulling out her hair until she had no eyebrows or hair on her head. Now, at age 28, Hannah is able to look back and see how much she has grown since she left her abuser. “My life became worse before it became better” Hannah said. “I lost the person I was before that relationship, and Annie’s project has allowed me to put the pieces of who I am back together.”

Bio

Annie Flanagan is an photographer, filmmaker and educator based in New Orleans, LA. Their work explores topics of self worth, personal narrative, gender and friendship within the documentary framework. Through film and photography, Annie works to push the boundaries of the format while exploring social issues. They live for long winding roads, with camera in hand and map laid out.

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5 thoughts on “Annie Flanagan – We Grew Up With Gum In Our Hair”

  1. JOHN GLADDY

    we agree!! i would have had this one up higher on the list had i been a juror..annie pushed the boundaries of visual storytelling and yet still tells the story…

  2. The remarkable thing for me in these photographs is not that they are an EPF finalist on Burn, but that they had such an impact in turning one woman’s life around. Even if no one else had not been able to view these, they would still have been a powerful tool to heal.

    Hannah, may you continue to win your battle against the demons in your world.

    Annie, what a gift for a friend.

  3. What ski waves says struck me, too.

    As to EPF finalist, it proves that the accidental, unintended essay can wind up among the best essays.

    I too would have put this one higher on the list.

    A tough job these judges had.

    I would never want to judge a photo contest.

  4. SKIWAVES

    very well said Mike….you are an astute observer……

    FROSTFROG

    jurors do have an almost impossible job…at a certain point you are judging amongst absolute equals….however, there is no other way….never “fair” yet always thought about very very carefully….we do not interfere but we do keep up with the conversations amongst our jurors…trust me, they THINK….all you have to do to justify the “results” is to follow the past EPF recipients track record following the jury selection process…not just the winners, but the finalists…two EPF finalists (not winners) have been selected by Magnum in the last few years for one thing…most have gone on to greater things one way or another…go look at the list….getting to the top 10 is where you want to be…after that it doesn’t really matter (well except that somebody gets 10 or 15k)….really good photographers are going to rise one way or another….so far in my career i have not seen one single great photographer somehow get left behind…sure a contest won or lost or an assignment not done so perfectly , but in the long run the cream rises…every time…..

    cheers, david

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