This interview was originally featured in Issue No. 15 — Place.

ANDREA BLANCH: The theme of our upcoming issue is Place, in the broadest sense. Can you talk about psychological spaces in your work? For example, the mental space of loss?

DIANNE YUDELSON: I would define the mental space of loss as a place where one is powerless over the void that is present in one’s mind and heart. In my series Lost, this void is represented by the black empty space surrounding the subject matter.

ANDREA: The womb is a place. What relationship do you have to this place?

DIANNE: I believe the womb is a place of fundamental rejuvenation and new beginnings. I feel a deep connection to this philosophical construct, as I am a person who awakens each day with a sense of new possibilities.

ANDREA: What mental space were you in when you became able or willing to share your experience through art? What changed to allow this to happen?

DIANNE: Last July, after helping a friend through a painful loss, I reflected on my own personal experience. These thoughts propelled me to take down the big white box in my closet, which safeguards the mementos of my lost babies. It had been quite a while since I last took each item out and laid them on my bed. I felt their story needed to be documented. I have read the assertion that meaningful art occurs when you share yourself and create from the depths of your soul. So I shared, through photographic expression.

ANDREA: I’m not sure if there’s a way to ask this question that doesn’t come off as insensitive, but because you’ve opened up the conversation around miscarriage, in part to dispel social taboos, I hope it’s ok to ask bluntly – why did you try to conceive so many times? Many women would give up after a few tries; why didn’t you? And finally, can you talk about when and why you stopped trying?

DIANNE: Firstly, as an optimistic person by nature, I believed if I wasn’t told to stop trying, there was hope. Secondly, miscarriages are not considered a medical problem requiring testing until you have suffered through three, and a great majority of women will be given the same diagnosis that I received: “unexplained.” Thirdly, during this journey, I did have two successful pregnancies. People are often surprised to know that having a healthy child does not change the emotional connections to those you have lost.

Dianne Yudelson, *Lost, Gwendolyn*, 2015.

ANDREA: Miscarriage isn’t just a women’s issue – men also have to deal with grief at the loss of a baby. I read that you have received positive feedback, from both men and women, for bringing this topic into conversation. If it’s not too personal, could you talk about how your husband dealt with the miscarriages? And how did these multiple losses affect your relationship?

DIANNE: My husband Jim is a compassionate and generous man and my best friend. Although men do not have to deal with the physical pain of miscarriage, they too suffer a loss and grieve. Even greater than Jim’s “grave disappointment” over the loss, I found that his main concern was to relieve my suffering. Our relationship grew stronger as we traversed this experience together. A number of men reached out to tell me how the images not only comforted them, but also propelled them to speak up and share their experience in an attempt to help one another. I was told that after viewing my images, one man, an obstetrician performing a routine D&C, began to consider the impact of the miscarriage experience on his patient.

ANDREA: Who have been the greatest influences in your work and in your life, and how do these influences manifest in your own work?

DIANNE: Personally, my grandmother, mother and husband have encouraged me to follow my talents and inspirations. Artistically, the great eclectic artists such as the painters like Magritte and Rousseau as well as the photographer Jerry Uelsmann have influenced my work by inspiring me to freely explore varied conceptual ideas and not conform to imposed artistic restrictions. Ansel Adams’ use of tonal scale and his meticulous attention to detail also motivates my work.