Multimedia Portraits

Child’s Play

Years ago, my six-year old daughter asked me if mermaids exist. She told me that a friend of hers saw one while on vacation. To compound the matter, we had recently seen a movie in which the main character was a mermaid. If you see something, does that mean it exists?

Children often ask “yes-no” questions. Answers are never that straightforward. My children live in a world of imaginary possibilities. Today, communication is global and invisible, lasers can correct vision, animals can talk, and mermaids exist. What is real is affected by what we believe.

Imagination and reality connect on many frontiers, making new wonders possible. Technology has greatly affected all aspects of the world we live in but the questions children have often remain the same. And, not all fears are quelled or problems solved. I am fascinated by the spaces between believable reality, imagination, and child’s play.