Why Am I Sad
Why Am I Sad, published by Kehrer Verlag, is Dana Stirling’s moving photographic meditation on depression, memory, and healing. Through quiet still lifes and deeply personal reflections, Stirling invites readers into an honest exploration of mental health, where photography becomes both a question and a lifeline.
Photography Dana Stirling
Pride of Madeira, Shoreline Highway, CA
Depression affects nearly 280 million people worldwide. In Why Am I Sad, I share my story as one of them.
I find myself engaged in a profound process of self-examination, mental health and sadness - using the camera to explore the essence of who I am and my connection to the art of photography. My roots lie in a small town. Within this space, I grappled with a pervasive sense of loneliness that transcended both the physical boundaries and the emotional confines of my surroundings. Even in the company of others, I felt a profound solitude that echoed within and beyond those walls.
Home, rather than a sanctuary, was a place where the weight of stress, anxiety, and extensive sadness loomed. Family, instead of offering solace, became a source of inner turmoil. Unspoken but deeply felt, my mother's battle with clinical depression cast a shadow over me. I saw her lose more and more of herself, becoming less and less a person I understood.
In my youth, I perceived her sadness as a natural extension of my own sadness, failing to grasp the impact it would have on my journey toward understanding and confronting my own struggles with depression as I grew older.
Photography emerged as my lifeline during these moments of isolation. Equipped with my camera, I found solace in the quietude of my room, capturing the silent narratives of everyday objects that became vessels for the unspoken language of my inner dialogue.
Photography, in essence, became my personal code, a means of externalising the words I couldn't articulate verbally. In the silent dialogue with still life, I discovered a form of communication that transcended the limitations of human interaction. Objects, devoid of judgment, spoke the untold stories, becoming my voice in a world where words often fell short.
Despite physically distancing myself from the room that once encapsulated my struggles, the weight of sadness remains a constant companion. Photography, once a means of escape, has transformed into a burden, shaping both my emotional state and the aesthetic of my images. The absence of photography leaves me despondent, while the act of capturing images reflects the pervasive cloud of sadness that hovers above me.
Sunny Side Up, Boonsboro, MD
Pink Balloons, Doylestown, PA
Outgrown, Weedsport, NY
“Photography, in essence, became my personal code, a means of externalising the words I couldn't articulate verbally.”
Memorabilia, Seligman, AZ
Dinner for One, Barstow, CA
Hold On, Queens, NY
Long Reach Cemetery, New Matamoras, OH
Why Am I Sad
Dana Stirling
Designed by Nicole Gehlen, Kehrer Design
Published by Kehrer Verlag (November 2024)
ISBN 978-3-96900-159-2
Swiss brochure with silk screen and embossed
112 Pages, 20 x 24 cm
You can purchase a copy of the book here
About Dana
Dana Stirling is a fine art photographer and the Co-Founder & Editor of Float Photo Magazine since 2014. She is currently based in Queens, New York. She earned her MFA in Photography, Video, and Related Media from The School Of Visual Arts in 2016, following her earlier BA in Photographic Communications from Hadassah College Jerusalem.
Dana Stirling's work has been prominently featured in group exhibitions in the United States and internationally, including reputable venues such as Panopticon Gallery and Saatchi Gallery. Her photography has gained recognition in various publications, including Buzzfeed, Feature Shoot, Der-Grief Magazine and others.
To see more about Dana’s work follow her on Instagram or visit her Website
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