More Than Words Can Express
Documentary photographer Donna Ferrato states in her biography that her camera is her best weapon for combating the prevalence of violence against women in our society. Her photos, which were on display at the Vanderbilt Fine Arts Gallery through Dec. 4, open up the conversation on a topic that so easily can be drowned out by an onslaught of negative media.
From Appalachian murder ballads to popular novels to innumerable movies, the subject of women being beaten and murdered seems to resonate on some perverse level as entertainment. In the gallery exhibit, with a young woman named Sarah as a focus, Ferrato’s photos show that women who survive domestic abuse can rise above it to build a new life.
Using her camera to illustrate role models for women who have been abused, Ferrato says more through her work than words can express, as good pictures often do.