Emi’s project, and then I ran, uses self portraiture and performance to re-enact Muriel’s escape from the home in 1964. These re-enactments are shot in black-and-white, with Emi acting as her grandmother. “I felt it wasn’t right for me to use self-portraiture as ‘myself’ but symbolising my grandmother’s story,” she says. “By removing my individual presence, I invite the viewer to focus not on me, but on the broader narrative of loss, erasure, and resilience experienced by thousands of women sent to these homes.”
Along with the black-and-white shots are colour landscapes – an invitation into other aspects of the story through religious iconography or symbols of loss. “The two elements of black and white and colour flip back and forth to form a personal emotional narrative and wider conversation of power and suppression,” says Emi. “This work can’t speak for everyone’s individual experience, but I try to reflect a broader pattern of institutional abuse and societal neglect.”
And then I ran is gentle and poetic, but it feels urgent. Especially in the context of Ireland’s fraught history with reproductive rights, and the ongoing control of women’s bodies today. “I hope this work encourages reflection and keeps the conversation alive in the pursuit of justice and reconciliation,” says Emi. “By keeping this part of history in focus, we ensure that younger generations, who may not be aware of these homes, continue to engage with the realities of institutional abuse from both church and state.”