Masks of Boston, Part 1
By Katherine Taylor | November 19, 2020
As a photojournalist who has covered many stories related to COVID-19, I was acutely aware that the advent of this virus had enormous personal and professional long-term, serious implications. I was becoming very anxious following the news and felt compelled to tell the stories beyond the headlines in an attempt to bring people agency during this time. The guiding principles to the project have been that this event is historic, every voice matters and positive community connection in a responsible way matters.
I welcome everyone who wants to share their experience free of charge. I ask them to reflect on their challenges, their strengths and their reasons for wearing a mask. There is a depth of emotion that individuals are experiencing during this time and a mask can be a symbol of something much deeper than it reads on the surface, making it perhaps more revealing than concealing.
My hope is that documenting mask-wearing and giving a voice to people will build deeper empathy amongst us all going through this separately yet together.
( Ed. Note: The following images are a sample of the subjects on the Masks of Boston site. Visit Masks of Boston to read the profile of each person and learn who they wear a mask for. The PL will publish more Masks of Boston samples in future posts. Katherine has photographed nearly 300 people to date.)
“Masks of Boston,” Cole and Maude Bascome-Duong, 20 years old, University Students ©2020 Katherine Taylor
“Masks of Boston,” Nicholas P. Jones, 33 years old, Plumber ©2020 Katherine Taylor
“Masks of Boston,” Vivian Huang, 3 years old ©2020 Katherine Taylor
“Masks of Boston,” Jose Duran, 45 years old, Asbestos/Lead Removal Supervisor – Union Worker ©2020 Katherine Taylor
“Masks of Boston,” Daniela Minidis, 13 years old, Student ©2020 Katherine Taylor
“Masks of Boston,” Steeve Cantave, 30 years old, Entrepreneur & Credit Consultant ©2020 Katherine Taylor
Copyright © 2020 Katherine Taylor
Katherine Taylor is a Boston, Massachusetts-based documentary photographer whose work emphasizes human rights. She has worked both nationally and globally. Her work has appeared regularly in The New York Times, The Boston Globe, The Wall Street Journal, Time magazine and more. Visit her site and Instagram feed to view her documentary work.