'Double Take: A Memoir' is a book by Kevin Connolly that I happened to stumble upon. Connolly was born with no legs, but despite this, he had a normal active childhood, refusing to let his disability affect his life. He chose to stop using prosthetic stilts and began to use a skateboard instead. However, all his life, he has been the recipient of curious stares.
Whilst still a student, Connolly decided to travel around 15 countries and took nearly 33,000 photos, which feature in this book as well as tales from his travels, and he also shares his experience of the relentless staring that is part of his life: 'All my life I've been an object of curiosity, the subject of a stare.'
Connolly's photos, which are also on an online exhibition, are amazing. I love portraits anyway, so I may be partially biased, but these particularly caught my eye because they’re so vibrant and there’s an amazing variety. Some of the people in Connolly's pictures have been caught unawares, but many are staring and you start to understand what Connolly must face everyday. It’s also really interesting to see the world from his point of view because it does look different, everything is slightly more impactful and imposing.
The book and online exhibition are definitely both work a look!
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