A multi-course meal or just a snack? What do you crave when you know it will be the last meal you eat? In her photo series “Last Meals,” the American photographer Jackie Black recreated the food wishes of people sentenced to death before execution. The series of photographs is currently on display at the Parrish Art Museum in New York.
On display are the last meals of 23 people who were on death row in Texas between 1984 and 2001. This includes the classic burger menu with fries, but also a simple bowl of cornflakes. One person wishes they could eat their favorite sweet again shortly before the end, another forgoes the last dish altogether.
From 2001 to 2003, Black dealt with final food desires. At the beginning she knew little about the topic. “The more I looked into the topic and learned about it, the more I saw how unfair the system is,” explains the artist and activist in the exhibition program. Almost all of the people executed were poor, and some obviously had psychological problems. “I am now a strong opponent of the death penalty.”
Although the project was completed a few years ago, the topic has lost none of its relevance. People are still sentenced to death in the USA. It was not until July 2020 that the death penalty caused a stir again. After 17 years in which no death penalty was carried out at the federal level, three people were executed within four days in July.
American photographer Jackie Black’s photo series “Last Meals” is currently on display at the Parrish Art Museum in New York. The exhibition can be seen until January 31, 2021.
Source: Parrish Art Museum