The Brown Sisters, Boston, Massachusetts 2012

Nicholas Nixon took this photograph of The Brown Sisters in Boston, though the year is not known. It’s a photo of four sisters huddled together in a black and white photograph. The women are embracing each other. What was it like to be Nixon, asking these women to pose, year after year, documenting their aging? There is a vulnerability in their faces, and in the small imperfections that time etches on our bodies. The image's strength comes from the artist's commitment to time. These sisters change as they age. It asks us to reflect on the passage of time. What is it like to photograph your loved ones? What is it like to be captured and immortalized in art? The beauty and strength of The Brown Sisters come from the trust and patience shared between the subjects and the photographer.