Mary Catherine O'Neil — School of Visual Art and Design at the University of South Carolina

Mary Catherine O’Neil
Love Tons,

BA Media Arts, 2021

Mental health awareness and suicide prevention are things we have all learned about, whether it was in school, in the media, or through personal experience. We are taught how to try to prevent the worst from happening, but you’re never told how to deal with the worst after it actually happens. I’m still not sure if that’s something that can be taught.

In December, my friends and I experienced the kind of loss that can never be fully understood. Our friend Ryan took his own life. The feeling is indescribable, but the hardest part is seeing the people you love go through it too. How can you ever be prepared for such a final goodbye, especially when you don’t realize it’s the last? How do you comfort the ones you love when you can't even wrap your head around your own feelings? Every time my friends and I sat down together, none of us could find the words to say. My hope was that these photographs could describe those feelings where words fell short.