shashasha

Tommytfortwo’s photobook “And then” tells the story of Tommy and Janice. They first met at a photography exhibition in 2012. Janice liked the quiet kindness of his photographs, like “sunlight shining through trees.” In 2013, they became a couple. Seven years later, Janice became sick with cancer. Initially, there was hope for recovery, but then the situation worsened. When Janice became homesick in her hospital bed, Tommy brought her photographs taken around the house. Two months later, Tommy held her hand as she died.

“And then” follows Tommy and Janice from the early days of their relationship – trips to Europe, strolls through nature, joking around – to the end. Designed to be read both from back to front and front to back, the story unfolds from two sides, with Tommy and Janice like missing moons, overlapping in the middle in the form of a full moon and the end of their story together.

“Several days after we heard the bad news, we both contemplated a lot of things. I asked her if there is anything unfulfilled in her life. She paused for a while and answered: “Marriage, probably.” So I suggested us to get married. She bursted into tears. We began arranging our wedding right away. She experienced the medical treatments and wedding simultaneously. She and I crafted our wedding rings together while her body was in great pain. When we were taking our wedding photos, her condition was deteriorating. On the wedding date, she lasted only half a day, just in time to receive all the blessings from families and friends.”
― from Tommytfortwo’s afterword

All texts included in Chinese and in English translation.