This body of work began with a box of photographs Worden found in her grandmother’s estate. Most of the images dated back to the early 20th century when she was a girl and people sent each other paper letters and snapshots. The artist wasn’t sure what to do with them until she heard Billy Collins read The Revenant, a poem told in the voice of a dog that is dead, addressing his former owner. The tone of the poem is, “I pretended to like you, but really I hated you.” It occurred to Worden that each photo had a story to tell and the real story was often hidden behind the smiling faces. Beginning with the notes her Grandma wrote on the backs of the photos, Worden used the names, dates and comments to help her construct accompanying narratives. The sinister artifacts were added to set the tone and inform the viewer what might be going on behind the smiles.
