Jean-Claude Van Damme

An artist is never greater than their work, but there is no way to separate the two completely.

I never meant to compare Dora to Van Damme. It was the way she extended her legs that brought my brother Gabriel to mind. When he arrived, he quickly became the darling of the family. He would sing and make an endearing little animal face. Then the VCR arrived. We would come home from school, and he would go straight to the movies. First, American Ninja. Then Van Damme came along, and things escalated. He watched Bloodsport so many times that he knew every line by heart. He hated stopping for lunch. My mother would insist, while he stayed in front of the television, repeating the dialogue.

Dora’s trick brought that final scene back to me once again: Van Damme, facing an opponent who is a multiple champion and much stronger than he is, unable to see, delivers the decisive blow and seals the victory.

Dora’s opponent is formidable. Every movement brings something new to learn; every training session presents a new challenge; every ascent means reaching a little higher. Victory does not seem possible. It is a decision.

The opponent, however, is herself. Overcoming herself becomes the condition for victory itself. Once she defeats her own limits, every other risk loses its scale.

As I was building this photograph, I found myself revisiting a part of my own life. This is a tribute to Gabriel and to that repetition that remains alive in my memories.

This is the power I allow photography to have in my life: to keep me close to the people I love.