I Am My Family: Photographic Memories and Fictions

Rafael Goldchain’s "I Am My Family" is a family album of traditional portrait photographs with an unconventional twist: the only subject is Goldchain himself. In an elaborate process involving genealogical research, the use of make-up, hair styling, costume, and props, Goldchain transforms himself into his ancestors and captures their personifications with the camera. Taking some liberties with historical accuracy, Goldchain has assembled a fascinating cast of characters: from his short-story-writing grandfather, to his great-aunts Pola and Fela, to the Rabbi Gur’s nephew in wedding dress, Goldchain reinvents himself over and over again. These beautifully reproduced self-portraits trace the evolution of Jewish culture from tradition to modernity and invite us to engage the history of a family decimated and scattered by the traumatic events of the 20th century. Featuring an insightful essay by curator Martha Langford, the portraits are complemented by a selection of the archival images on which they are based as well as selections from the artist’s handwritten sketchbooks.

Born in Santiago, Chile, Rafael Goldchain received an MFA from York University and a BAA from Ryerson Polytechnic Institute. He is currently Program Coordinator of the Applied Photography Program at Sheridan Institute of Technology and Advanced Learning in Oakville, Ontario.

Goldchains photographs have been exhibited in Canada, Chile, the United States, Cuba, Germany, Italy, the Czech Republic, and Mexico. His work is in private and public collections including France's Biblioteque National, the Canadian Museum for Contemporary Photography, New York's Museum of Modern Art, Houston's Museum of Fine Arts, and San Diego's Museum of Photographic Arts.