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Photo competition

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Winners

Rosanna Farrell - Reversed Roles

Photo of mother and daughter arranging flowers

This is a picture of Rosanna's mother and grandmother. Rosanna feels it shows how her mother has now taken on a maternal caring role. In this picture she is arranging flowers to the delight of Rosanna's grandmother.

We chose this photograph because it showed how the relationship between mother and daughter can be expressed through the senses, especially touch. The physical resemblance between Rosanna's mother and grandmother is clear, despite the difference in their ages. People in our study often commented on resemblances between different generations of their family, or told us about "growing into" a likeness. This photograph illustrated this theme for us, showing how resemblances can be a way of connecting us to the people around us and making us feel like we belong.

Isabelle Poveda (age 12) - Meow!

Photo of girl and her cat being like each other

Isabelle's cat is always trying to be like a human - she sometimes even sits on a chair at the table. In this photo Isabelle decided that she would try to be more like her cat
instead.

We chose this photo because we liked the idea that humans and animals can sometimes try to become more like each other and we thought that this expressed something about the relationship between Isabelle and her cat. It also reminded us that animals can be important members of the family.

Runners-up

K Omphornuwat - D is Delicious

Photo of billboard advertising family restaurant

Kosum took this photograph during a visit home to Bangkok. This massive signpost is the talk of the town in the neighbourhood and is part of a campaign for Kosum's sister's restaurant, D' Steak. Kosum's brother Big is on the left, and her sisters Sam and Jeab are in the centre and right of the picture. Jeab is the boss.

We chose this photograph because it shows some strong resemblances in a family business in Bangkok, and because it made us smile. We liked the fact that it was a picture of a billboard, with the city background behind it, rather than a straightforward family photograph.

Kate Rowles - Home and Away

Photo of mother and daughter singing Home and Away theme to each other

This is a still from a video of Kate and her mother singing the Home and Away theme tune to each other, in an effort to make close and make personal the lyrics of a popular Australian soap opera. The video project explored the significance of this process for relationships - between parent and child, life and death, belonging and separation.

We chose this photograph not only because of the strong physical likenesses between Kate and her mother, which are emphasised by the shot taken in profile and the light and shadows, but also because we liked the way that it demonstrated how resemblances can be found in behaviour, in what we do, in voice and in sound.

Andrew Stevenson - No Fake Copies

Photo of 2 men eating together

Andrew believes that whilst bloodline and physical appearance can reflect family resemblance, often it is our behaviour which unites us as in these two gentlemen of Derbyshire sharing a meal together.

We chose this photograph because it shows the way resemblance can be part of ordinary everyday life, like what and how we eat, body posture and demeanour, the clothes we wear, the places we go, the people we spend time with. We thought the 'no fake copies' motif was amusing and a nice play on the distinction between individuality, similarity and duplication.

Lindsay Thomas - Do I have to sit next to the girls?

Photo of 2 sisters with brother in the middle

We chose this photograph because it seems to be bursting with relationships - between the children themselves, and between them and the photographer. It is interesting that the likenesses between the girls are emphasised by them wearing the same clothes and hairbands, and yet their demeanour and expressions are not the same. The boy sits between them (somewhat reluctantly judging by the title!) in some ways challenging the idea that it is the girls who are most alike. Each of the children has a different expression for the person taking the photograph. A lovely, vibrant picture!

Highly Commended

Marion McAllister - I want to look like my Mummy

Photo of mother and daughter dressed and sitting alike

This is a photograph of Marion and her daughter, Tara. When Tara was born everyone said she looked like her dad. Marion insisted she took after her, because they both had red hair, but she later found out that red hair also ran in her husband's family. When Tara was two, she decided for herself that she wanted to look like her mummy, which Marion was pleased about!

We liked the story that goes with this photograph, and the way the picture illustrates it. It highlights a theme from our project about who gets to decide who resembles who, and how people can decide to emphasise a particular resemblance for themselves.

Richard Morrow - Twins

Photo digitally edited to show the same person 8 times in the scene

We liked the way this photograph makes you look twice, until you realise that the "twins" are of course the same person.

Harriet Shortt - Sharing the same nose

Photo of man tasting wine

Harriet notices a resemblance between her boyfriend (in the photograph) and her father, even though they aren't related. They both have similar noses: "long and straight and strong" and they both share an interest in wine and enjoy drinking it together. Harriet likes the resemblances because it makes a connection between two people who are important to her.