‘They could picture me, or I could picture them’: ‘Displaying’ family life beyond borders through mobile photography

ABSTRACT

Taking photographs has been an integral part of family life. However, recent technological innovations in mobile communication have paved the way for diverse use of photographic images in a household. This paper investigates how 21 Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) in Melbourne, Australia, and their left-behind family members in the Philippines deploy mobile photography to perform and embody visual co-presence. By examining the data based on in-depth interviews, photo elicitation and field notes, the study uncovers the role of images in enabling the ‘display’ (Finch, J. 2007. Displaying families. Sociology, 41(1), 65–81) of familial roles, responsibilities, and values. Notably, by taking into account how socio-cultural and socio-technological forces inform photographic practices, this study identifies and proposes four dimensions of visual co-presence, including casual, practical, curated, and strategic. Consequently, images are broadly understood as important tools in bridging and reclaiming family life as disrupted by the uneven consequences of a global economy in the Philippines. In sum, the study aims to unpack the paradoxical consequences of mobile photography in the maintenance of transnational domesticity.

KEYWORDS:

• Display
• mobile photography
• smartphone
• Facebook
• group messaging
• transnational families
• differential visual co-presence
• paradox

Acknowledgements

I would like to extend my deepest gratitude to the informants of the research study for their generosity and willingness to share their personal stories and photos. Their narratives have been an inspiration to rethink the display and conduct of family life at a distance in contemporary times. I also extend my gratitude to the two anonymous reviewers for their insightful and helpful feedback.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author.

Notes on contributor

Earvin Charles Cabalquinto is a Lecturer in Communication in the School of Communication and Creative Arts (SCCA) at Deakin University. His research interests include transnational communication, mediated intimacies, caregiving at a distance, and the politics of mediated mobilities.