I usually shoot street photography but because of the pandemic the streets have been empty, I decided to photograph the people I saw everyday: my parents.

For the series entitled Homebound with my Parents I have been building sets and constructing narratives with my parents as the focus and the protagonists.

I am drawn to the monotony associated with family life during the pandemic, exploring how small details of color and play can become marvels in monotonous settings.

When I started the project I read an article saying how it was a common phenomenon for people to daydream nostalgic thoughts as a form of escapism from the pandemic. I wanted to utilize nostalgia as a form of escapism in the series.

Growing up in Ireland in the 1990s I would always see Catholic religious iconography in people’s houses. These images fascinated, amazed and also bewildered me. I also like to explore this in my work.

— Enda Burke

Editor’s note: This series was a finalist in LensCulture’s HOME International Photography Prize 2021. Be sure to see all of the other winners, jurors’ picks and finalists on the winner’s page.