Nancy Farese: Potential Space

Play as personal and social therapy: portraits of the resilience of children

In 2017, award-winning Boston- and San Francisco–based photographer Nancy Farese visited Bangladesh to photograph the Rohingya refugee crisis. While she saw firsthand the most violent tendencies of humankind, she also bore witness to endless displays of perseverance from the youngest members of these communities. On the edge of every frame she saw children at play, adapting to their circumstances to socialize and heal with one another.
This photobook documents children’s play across 14 countries, including Haiti, Cuba, Burkina Faso, Jordan and the US, in full-color photographs. Farese invites us to consider how this universal activity is threatened by the unrelenting forces of technology, consumerism and even overparenting. Featuring a foreword by New York Times staff photographer James Estrin, Potential Space offers a global view of a mundane activity that powerfully shapes who we are, both as individuals and as a society.