NYC Photo Club at The Center

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Artist's Statement
I lost my identical twin brother Alan to AIDS in June of 1992. We had been very close. I was only out to him and two others. After his death my interest in taking pictures of empty chairs and park benches developed. I wrote a short story that I called An Empty Chair (below) for a bereavement newsletter. As the years continue to pass and I see a new bench to photograph I think of all that my brother has missed and all of the changes that have since occurred. AN EMPTY CHAIR The first wedding was two years after Alan, my twin- brother, passed away. My second oldest brother was getting married. I was waiting for the question, "When was I going to get married?" I was never asked so I couldn’t use my prepared response, "When Alan could be my best man." I thought if I did get married I would have an empty chair next to me. If Alan couldn’t be my best man, I didn’t want anyone. My brother’s name would appear in the program (that he would have designed) as honorary best man. This year I turned thirty-six, it was my sixth birthday without Alan. At the restaurant we had made a mistake, the reservation had been made for one too many. I had ended up sitting next to an empty chair. Although I thought, I was doing better, no longer crying at family events. I now realize that I will not have an empty chair at my wedding, if I can ever bring myself to get married without Alan being there. The loss I feel will always be there but its much worse seeing an empty chair.

Web site: http://www.danielyoffee.com

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