Check It Out: ‘First And Foremost I Am’ By Sigga Ella

Sigga Ella’s exhibition at the Reykjavík Photography Museum presents 21 portraits of people with Down Syndrome, aged nine months to 60 years old. The idea came from a radio interview Sigga heard about the ethical questions surrounding prenatal diagnosis of birth defects. If parents could choose not to keep an embryo with Down Syndrome, how many of these people would be with us? The title of the work comes from an article written by Halldóra Jónsdóttir after being troubled by a newspaper article that dealt with these ethical question. In it, she powerfully declares, “I have Down syndrome but FIRST AND FOREMOST I AM Halldóra.”

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When: February 5 – April 7, Mon-Thurs 12-19, Fri 12-18, Sat-Sun 13-17
Where: Reykjavík Photography Museum, Tryggvagata 15
Admission: Free!