Fountain of Youth
Laure Andrillon
The Honeys and Bears are a synchronized swimming team for seniors founded in 1979 in the heart of Harlem (New York). Members are currently between the ages of 64 and 100 years old, some of whom still remember the era of segregated pools. Several have been swimming their entire lives; some are just beginning to learn. When they slip into the water, gravity seems to evaporate, diseases and injuries go unnoticed to make way for lightness and joy - they feel young again. This project documents how the swimming pool has become, for these swimmers of color, a place of physical but also psychological healing. Some members remember how it was when they could only go to the swimming pool on « colored days », and when it was scheduled to be drained for White people to swim in. Others recall being told they wouldn’t be able to float because of the composition of their bones; girls would be discouraged from getting into the water because it was expensive to have their naturally frizzy hair straightened again after being wet.
location
→ Galeria do Paço da UMinho (Braga)
schedule
→ Monday to Saturday: 10am - 6pm
→ Sundays: Closed
Laure Andrillon
Laure Andrillon is a freelance writer & photographer born in Martinique, France. She is currently based San Francisco, CA after spending a year in Brooklyn, NY. Her work is largely focused on issues related to migration, environment, aging and underrepresented communities. She studied contemporary philosophy and art theory at the École Normale Supérieure and the École des Hautes Études en Sciences Sociales in Paris. After graduating in 2015, she went on to study at the Centre de Formation des Journalistes and completed a second M.A. in journalism in 2016. She moved to California in 2017 to work as a West coast correspondent for various French newspapers and magazines. In 2021-2022, she relocated to New York City to attend a full-time documentary photography program at the International Center of Photography, after receiving the ICP Director’s merit-based fellowship. Her work has been recognized by the French Société civile des auteurs multimédia who awarded her the Long-Term Project Grant in 2020. She also received the Fondation Varenne prize for “best feature” in 2019, and the Cancer World Journalism Award in the "Patient and Carer Experience" category in 2018. Her work has appeared in French and in English in publications including Le Monde, Libération, GÉO Magazine, LensCulture, Usbek & Rica Magazine and Néon Magazine.
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