Liechti’s photographs are stark and clinical, avoiding mawkishness or sentimentality; the viewer senses the brusqueness and the pressure of the pandemic measures which meant that the dying and their families were often separated from one another, or visits were strictly limited. One image shows a wall of labelled urns; others depict the hands of the deceased, faces respectfully excluded from the frame, with mortuary workers in PPE proffering a reassuring hand, or carrying the lid of a casket.
The work, Liechti says, provides a basis from which to begin a discussion. “It is an invitation to look closer, to develop a more differentiated understanding and to reflect on the various issues: how do we as a society deal with death? What are the consequences of pandemic measures on the dying process? How do we protect the most vulnerable? Who works in this field?”
These topics, uncomfortable as they may be, are indivisible from life itself: death is one of humankind’s only guarantees. On this basis it is an apt project for Portrait of Humanity, an award that aims to celebrate what unites us through difficulty. As a series winner, Liechti’s project was exhibited at Photo 22 in Melbourne, and will be exhibited at Indian Photo Festival in November this year.