Anna Leigh Clem
Anna Leigh Clem
Laden
2023
First edition of 100
48 Pages
8”x7”
About the Book:
Laden explores personal anxieties and desires as reflected in the landscape surrounding an old farmhouse on Prince Edward Island. The photographs follow the lifecycle of a bed of poppies, sequenced alongside self-portraits and surrounding forest and meadows, picturing place as intrinsically linked with inner experience. || (Text at end of book:) When we arrive at the Kidson Homestead in early July, the poppies across from the front door are large, hairy buds full of the promise of bloom, not dissimilar to my anticipation and excitement for this place—an old farmhouse surrounded by reclaimed farmland on Prince Edward Island—which I’ve had the privilege to visit in summers since my infancy.
While we are not native to the island, this is where we go to come home. With the freedom to roam, I have explored its forests and meadows alongside my anxieties and desires, finding similitude in my surroundings. As our time on the island slips by, the poppies’ petals wither and fall, and after a heavy rainstorm—nothing remains. Meanwhile, their hard, green pods prepare to ripen, to spread their seeds in the wake of our departure.
Image by Anna Clem
Book review by Sage Helene |
In Laden, Anna Leigh Clem explores her deep connection to Prince Edward Island. The book serves as both a visual and emotional journey, capturing the calm and restless nature of life, as well as the longing and belonging of home. Since Clem first arrived on Prince Edward Island 35 years ago, it has always been her home—a place of enchantment and profound connection. Now, she invites us inside.
Clem’s work is influenced by Andrei Tarkovsky’s Stalker, a film she likens to her own experiences on the island. The film follows an expedition led by a guide called the “Stalker,” who takes a writer and a professor to a mysterious, forbidden site known as the “Zone,” where a room is said to grant a person’s deepest desires. Clem describes, “In Laden, I picture the farmstead as a living being through anthropomorphic imagery.” This idea is vividly expressed in one of her self-portraits, where Clem lies in the meadow, evoking a moment from Stalker when the protagonist collapses in ecstasy in the tall grass upon first entering “The Zone.” The land exhales as the woman inhales, illustrating a quiet moment of harmony between nature and humanity. This photograph exemplifies both the desperation and comfort of belonging, capturing Clem’s sense of urgency to absorb every moment of her return home—an urgency fueled by the awareness that time is limited. Yet, it is precisely this limitation that makes the place so enchanting.
Image by Anna Clem
Clem’s work does not unfold in a straightforward narrative, but rather in interconnected fragments that mirror the stages of a life lived. We enter this world innocently, discovering as we go, until we eventually confront mortality. For Clem, returning to Prince Edward Island is not merely about revisiting a physical place; it is a return to a sense of home that transcends geography. “While I acknowledge that ‘home’ is more a feeling than a location, I can’t help but sense that I’ve come home when we arrive at the Kidson Homestead,” she reflects. “It feels as though I am returning to my truest self, as if the island is a pillar of my being.” It’s the familiar sensation of walking down the same road, yet not being able to recall when or where. That strange, almost prickly feeling in your mind when you experience déjà vu.
Image by Anna Clem
Image by Anna Clem
Laden suggests that true recognition lies not in the place itself, but in uncovering what feels familiar—a sense of having been there already, but now seeing it with fresh eyes. As you turn the pages, you may find yourself wondering, “Have I been here before?” In that reflection, you may uncover a deeper understanding of your own place of belonging.
At the heart of Laden lies the metaphor of the red poppy. This red poppy returns at the end of every summer on Prince Edward Island, offering a vivid representation of life’s cycles. Clem’s photographs, soft and dream-like in focus, evoke an ethereal atmosphere, yet the red poppy stands out amidst this hazy landscape. The red color, rooted in the island, symbolizes the anticipation of the season’s bloom, its blossoming in the sun, and, ultimately, its decay.
Image by Anna Clem
