GRIEF PROJECT





IN THE BEGINNING
  • In early February of 2024, I wrote an instagram post that launched what I now call Grief Project. The concept grew from a place of loss and a need to create something real, deeply honest, and seperate from the commerical world that my work usually inhabits. Back then, I didn’t have a clear vision of where the work would lead, but I began with a very simple question: What’s one thing you wish the people around you knew about your grief?

    I SHARED
      February 9, 2024 
      @jsachsmichaels
      Ten years ago a meteor tore through the carefully painted backdrops and postcards that had papered the windows of my stability. 

      In the years since, I have collaborated with grief in every blink of my eye and every smile on my lips.  

      There is no guidebook for how to pick up the pieces. There is no recourse for the injustice, or theft, emptiness, or rage. There is a society that appears to only care that we go back to work and resume business as usual as quickly as humanly possible.

      When my mother died it changed me profoundly. Now, a decade later, I am ready to collaborate overtly with grief.  

      I’m seeking subjects who have experienced the passing of a loved one, grief, and are willing to take part in a project that revolves around sharing these deeply personal stories. 

      You are perfect for this project. Your experience has a place here. Please share with friends and friends of friends.






    CONVERSATIONS ABOUT LOSS




    SESSIONS
    • I walk into a quiet studio. 

    • I slowly build cameras. They go on tripods. I mount audio equipment. Lights go on stands. I look over questions I intend to ask: 
    • “What does your grief feel like in its current stage?” 
    • “How has your grief changed over time?“ 
    • “Has your grief changed you?”
    • And others.

    • There is a knock on the door. In walks a stranger, or an acquaintance, sometimes a friend. They are strong and courageous. They walk in with a willingness to share their rawest selves, show their scars, and open up about something infinitely personal.

    • I am continually in awe.

    • Grief Project is a place for people to shed the invisibility and the deep loneliness in asking the self to mourn. It is a space where you can speak the name of a loved one who will never whisper your name back. It is a place for people to feel the power of acknowledging their loss, and to share their experience.  

    • I am so grateful to everyone who has come forward for these conversations. Both for the ones in studio as well as the ones that organically arrive over dinner, on the airplane, with late-night drinks. We are a community, and in the moment when we recognize each other, I am filled with gratitude that you are here with me.


    WHO IS INVITED
    • Everyone who has grieved the loss of a loved one. If reading these words makes you feel that you have a story to share, you are welcome. 

    • While this project is open to everyone, not everyone feels compelled to take part. Our stories are as different as our need to grieve in different ways.

    • In addition to meeting with people to talk about their own grief, I am looking for end-of-life professionals: hospice workers, doctors, grief counselors, etc., who are interested in talking about their experiences.






    SHARING OUR MOST PRECIOUS STORIES




    DETAILS
    • Each session is allotted an hour. Most go around 45 minutes. 

    • Between each session I have 15 minutes of downtime. I will do as many in a day as I have time for and will add additional days as needed. 

    • It’s important to me that everyone who wants to speak has a chance to.

    • Each session is recorded with audio and video. A talent release is provided.

    • Each session is a conversation with loose interview questions. They are one-on-one. Answers can be as involved or brief as the participant wishes.

    • I ask each participant to bring an object that they associate with their grief.

    • Session days have taken place in New York and Los Angeles. 

    • I know there are also requests for New England and the Pacific Northwest. My hope is to go to all of the places.


    ABOUT JEREMY
    • Ever since I was a young boy, I photographed the world around me and I blossomed under my mother’s glow. 

    • It was her vision that led me to Bard and then to RISD. 

    • It was her family in New York throughout my childhood that molded my identity and eventually led me back to the city of my birth.

    • Now, more than a decade after her passing, it is the love and loss I feel for my mother that has led me here to this project and to each of you. 

    • Her name was Ona and she died of cancer with her family around her. She was 59. 


    Thank you,
    Jeremy Sachs-Michaels




    THERE IS THIS IDEA THAT WE ARE SIBLINGS IN OUR GRIEF


    HOW TO
    • If you would like to participate in the Grief Project please send me an email. Mention “Grief Project” in the subject line. 

    • Grief Project is on-going. 






    MAY THEIR MEMORY BE A BLESSING






                     ©2025 IYKYK Productions / Jeremy Sachs-Michaels. All rights reserved.