Sherry Wiggins and Luís Branco
 The Mirror Between Us
An art project about the archetype of a middle aged woman in a mythical landscape.

This project contemplates on aging, human-nature relation and beauty.
It was meant to culminate in a grand exhibition in the Igreja de S. Vicente in Évora with an opening on 4 April 2020. But due to the Corona virus it had to be postponed. It now is scheduled for 26 April-6 June 2022 ,
This page gives an impression of the project and gives links to more background information.

Introduction

If we look closely, we can see ourselves reflected in the eyes of others. What we see deepens our view of ourselves.
With this mirror concept in mind, Portuguese photographer, Luís Branco, and American visual artist, Sherry Wiggins, immersed themselves in the Alentejo landscape for a four-year photo project.
The resulting exhibition has three layers: a photo shoot of an unusually dressed woman in nature, an exploration of human/nature relationships, and a vision on being a middle-aged woman.
Inspired by nature, the artists went through an intimate process of seeing, and being seen, in a search for that one fugitive, poetic, and emotional moment. The images reflect a deep connection to the Alentejo landscape in all its archetypal, mythological, and contemporary feminine splendor.
Empowered by earth, water, and sky, a woman, a matriarch, a saint or a witch, merges with the landscape – a landscape that is often inviting and embracing, sometimes hostile and frightening – resulting in an intimate exploration of connections between the feminine body, mind, and spirit and the natural world.
The images are also portraits of the soul of an aging woman, a sensual being, sometimes ugly, sometimes beautiful…maybe like your mother, sister, grandmother, lover or friend?
The images communicate universal themes of life, death, aging, strength, and vulnerability, culminating in open-ended narratives.

Sydney Payton wrote Mirror Image,  a beautiful essay on the works of the intended but postponed exhibition. It is available by email and can also be read on the website of Sherry Wiggins.

Sherry Wiggins and Luis Branco won the first price with "outside woman" in a photo exhibition "Eye of the Camara; MYTHS and LEGENDS (April, May 2021, Littleton Museum Collorado USA). The photo will also be part of their exhibition in Évora in 2022.

Sherry Wiggins (Boulder, Colorado USA) came in 2015 to Portugal to research the work of Helena Almeida (1934- 2018) and her method of using her own figure as the subject of her work. Sherry Wiggins is also inspired by artists like Ana Mendieta and Francesca Woodman, performing and depicting themselves in the landscape.
Sherry Wiggins approaches art as a feminine/ feminist relational process and enactment. Her practice includes digital works, drawings, installations, performances, photographs and sculptures.
She has exhibited widely in the US and throughout the world, is represented by Michael Warren Contemporary in Denver (Colorado, USA).  
 
www.sherrywiggins.com
sherrywigginsblog.com

Luís Branco (Lisbon, Portugal) lived until recently in Évora. He began his career as a photojournalist at the Jornal Público and was assistant professor at the Portuguese Institute of Photography. Since 2002 he works freelance as photojournalist. In 2015, he became a partner with GMT, an Évora-based company that produces films on culture and on institutions.  
Luís Branco has collaborated with musicians, poets and visual artists. In 2016 he exhibited with Dutch poet, Gerry van der Linden, in the Public Library of Évora.

Facebook: lfilipebranco

Luis Branco is in close contact with Foundation OBRAS since 2016. He had several collaborative projects with residents. This page gives an impression.

Sherry Wiggins and Luís Branco have exhibited their collaborative work in both the US and Portugal. In 2017 they held a large exhibition titled Meeting Her Again or Reencontrando-a in the Palacio dos Marqueses da Praia e Monforte in Estremoz.

They have also exhibited in Denver (USA) at Michael Warren Contemporary. Their work was featured during the Month of Photography 2019 at RedLine Contemporary Art Center, also in Denver.

In 2019 they started a project: The Unknown Heroine, about a woman who dreams of being a princess but is trapped in the life of a housewife. An exhibition was in 2021, in Denver, USA.
A book was on this project was published in May 2021.