Gallery-In-A-Box, 'Every Angel'

This Gallery-In-A-Box contains five, 4x6 inkjet prints selected from the “Every Angel Is Terrifying” portfolio, and individually printed by me with one of them mounted in an MCS 4x6 Inch Format Frame. The frame is simple, elegant, with a thin black profile and inexpensive. It has a front-loading design with polished edge glass. The frames are widely available and ready for wall hanging either vertically or horizontally and include a snap-in easel for tabletop display.
The portfolio addresses the sadness and grief associated with losing youth and beauty to illness and death. The poetry of Rainer Maria Rilke [Duino Elegies] served as a touchstone while coming to an understanding of that phase of life.

Who, if I screamed, would hear me among the angels?
and even if one of them would press me against her breast:
I would be annihilated by her overwhelming splendor.
For beauty is nothing but the beginning of the horrific, which we are only
able to bear in passing
as it threatens to obliterate us. Each and every angel is terrifying.

Not an obvious or easy connection to make. David Byrne [Bicycle Diaries] comments on that when recounting a conversation in Berlin "…with Matthias Arndt, a local gallerist…. Matthias said beauty - being ephemeral, evanescent, and impermanent - reminds us of death. I would have never put an equal sign between the two myself – seems overly Romantic a la Rilke again, but I see his point. The morbidity of beauty. Huh." When Jeanne Wells suggested the title to me it fit perfectly.

The Gallery-In-A-Box is offered as part of the Artist and also Photographer Support Pledge and is for sale through my BigCartel account, see link in bio. [https://christianharknessfoto.bigcartel.com/product/art-gallery-in-a-box]

Technical: 35mm black and white, Fuji Neopan 1600, negatives. A mixture of lith and toned prints. Please allow two weeks for delivery, and please don’t hesitate to ask any questions.

Comment by a Box recipient:

I am so touched and impressed.. the letter you wrote, the concept itself, the packaging - box, prints, envelope, paper, fonts, format/size of prints is the best, the frame is the perfect fit for the prints and their size. And the print of my photo is a pleasant surprise. Thank you for being so thoughtful and attentive to all the details. I appreciate every thought and emotion you put into it! Thank you so much!
AK, St. Petersburg, Russia