 These
are the words of Mary Fisher, AIDS activist,
mother, artist and photographer; former
advance woman for President Gerald Ford and
former wife who, in a loving marriage,
contracted the virus that causes AIDS.
To make visible this "invisible army of
compassion," Mary Fisher set out to
photograph caregivers of people -- children,
women, men -- with HIV and AIDS. She
traveled from Connor's Nursery in West Palm
Beach, Florida, to the women's prison on
Riker's Island; from an AIDS clinic in
Birmingham, Alabama, to a Michigan food bank
preparing meals for AIDS shut-ins, and to
Rosie's Place, a home for Boston women in
need. To capture the stories in photographs,
Fisher had to move in close: into the
subdued hospital rooms of the very sick,
into the laughter of friends, both healthy
and infected.
Moving in close was often difficult, she
wrote: "My cameras made me feel as if I were
an intruder." Determined to reveal and honor
this invisible army, Fisher went on the road
for four years, taking photographs and
writing. The result: a moving album of
stories that illuminate the courage,
dedication and love of caregivers, the
angels in our midst. |
