Warm lights shone down on the naturally-dyed clothes senior Desmond Tarkowski-Pope.L wore as his mother, Chicago artist Christine A. Tarkowski, gave him instructions on how to pose. She adjusted his clothes before having a photographer take each photo for her textile art collection called “mud+acid,” which Desmond was modeling for.

Before the shoot, she had spent months preparing a line of clothes made with natural dyes. What started as a simple request for help with a photo shoot became a chance for Desmond and his mother to build a new understanding of each other’s interests.

Ms. Tarkowski has been creating art ever since high school and enjoys working with a variety of mediums, from glass to sculpture. The modeling experience for his mother gave Desmond a deeper appreciation for the intricate process of his mother’s work and the effort behind it. 

“Sometimes I see art as just a thing that you see, but there’s always that story behind it and how it was made,” Desmond said. “Watching her make this work and seeing why she made it, how she has a story behind it, the time it took and the trial and error, made me appreciate it even more.”

Although Desmond is the son of two artists — his late father was the notable performance artist Pope.L — Desmond gravitates toward political science and history. Still, he has learned that, like history, art is multifaceted. This idea has influenced his view on life’s many meanings.

“In history, people have different ideas of what happened or why something happened. I think that’s something that connects people to work together but creates different ideas where they can build off together,” Desmond said. 

His mother believes that her and Pope.L’s artwork is connected to Desmond’s interest in the humanities, even though their art isn’t in the same physical medium.

Ms. Tarkowski said, “Desmond is forging his own path separate from what his parents have done. But, there are definitely some contextual parallels in his interests. I think some of his interests may be more philosophical but not physical, while his parents have worked in the physical realm of material.”

This photo shoot helped him spend more time with his mother despite his busy schedule. 

“During junior year, I would be at the Regenstein [Library] doing homework, or I’d be with friends. I rarely was at home — whether it was for sports or just being out — and I wouldn’t get back until late,” Desmond said.

He appreciated that modeling gave them time to bond and allowed him to learn more about what she loves to do.

“I learn something more about her every single time she has a show, where I see her art and I see the work she’s put into it and the thought behind it,” Desmond said. “I feel like if she was in a different line of work I wouldn’t be able to connect with her in that way where I get to see a different side of her.”