Sara J. Winston: Homesick

Sara J. Winston: Homesick by Aline SmithsonDecember 2, 2015

©Sara J. Winston, Homesick Book Cover

A month or so ago, I received an intriguing package of two books, each wrapped in the Sunday cartoon pages, which made a lively impression. One of those packages contained a book by Sara J. Winston, Homesick, published by Zatara Press and accompanied by a short story by Ani Katz. Homesick is about those moments that define who we are, the small novellas that surround our lives, each image a starting point for a short story or memory to be cataloged and considered at a later date. There is the sense that illness brings more clarity, allowing for the in between and the insignificant to come into sharper focus.

Sara is an artist living in New York. She completed her Master of Fine Arts in Photography at Columbia College Chicago in 2014. Her work has been exhibited nationally and internationally including The Corcoran Gallery of Art in Washington, DC and the Pingyao International Photography Festival in China. Her work is in the collection of The Joan Flasch Artists’ Book Collection in Chicago, IL, and The Indie Photobook Library in Washington, DC.

©Sara J. Winston

When you’re sick people say things:

What are avocados good for?

Your stomach is your second brain.

You probably shouldn’t be eating that.

You can stay as long as you like.

I didn’t sign up for this.

We’re just glad you’re here.

-Ani Katz, excerpt from Homesick

Homesick is a diary of my relocation from Michigan to New York as told through anecdotal photographs of homes past, present, and future, and the people, meals, and events that impacted the transition. The move, originally motivated by my desire to be near family, grew to be more pressing after I was diagnosed with Relapsing-Remitting Multiple Sclerosis.