In 2022, Vancouver-based photographer Rachel Nixon discovered a woman nearly erased from her family’s history: her great-grandmother, Maggie Victoria. Following her early death in 1943 in Lancashire, UK, her name went unspoken within the family for decades. Maggie Victoria’s story was finally restored through the use of a found archive of amateur photography, documents, and letters written in her final weeks. These letters provide an emotionally raw insight into an ailing woman maintaining a brave face during wartime.

By blending these archival traces with contemporary photography, Rachel explores how we can weave world events with personal heritage to render our ancestors visible and present once more. This talk offers a fresh perspective on how we can use creative narrative alongside local and global context to bridge generational gaps and find the spark within our own family records.