'Moral injury' refers to the witnessing of trauma and injustice that transgress one's values and overwhelms a sense of humanity (Shay 2014). 'Burnout' is often used to label those who leave toxic workplaces when in fact, 'moral injury' is a more apt term. 'Burnout' insinuates that there is deficit with the individual and therefore, that it is their responsibility to 'deal' with it, both emotionally and financially. Moral injury isn’t something that happens to some people because they ‘can’t handle the work’, rather, it is something that is done to us by the State and institutions.  

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The theme of this photo series is about the impact of care work, with an emphasis on the responsibility of the State and the institutions who inflict this upon us.

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‘Care work’ is a broad term that I am using to encompass many different types of work including parenting, emotional work in relationships, translating, being a carer, medical and social work. 

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This documentary series includes five portraits (including a self portrait) paired with a still life image, depicting each person's coping mechanism of choice.

 

This series highlights how care work is disproportionately done by women and non-binary people.