AMATEUR ART PHOTOGRAPHY 1ST PLACE WINNER
Diana Rubi
The architecture of care
Around 1.3 billion people worldwide live with a significant disability—a number that continues to grow with rising life expectancy. Caregiving touches millions of lives, yet caregivers often go unrecognized despite their essential role in sustaining communities.
About fifteen years ago, my mother was diagnosed with a spinal condition that left her unable to walk. I was 17 when I became her caregiver. This journey taught me that resilience is not about reaching a state of invulnerability, but about building the capacity to constantly rebuild—even when everything feels broken.
Inspired by my mother’s profession, this series uses architecture as a metaphor for care—building safe spaces, both physical and emotional. Each photograph reflects the stages we experienced throughout the caregiving journey: impact, responsibility, exhaustion, resilience, unconditional love, and hope. This work seeks to honor caregivers and highlight their vital, often overlooked contributions to our society.
For the creation of these autobiographical photographs, a room was built from scratch, and the series took a total of six months to produce.

