"My body tells our story"
Kimbra Audrey is a Paris-based American artist whose work explores self-discovery, mental health, and resilience. Known for her raw and unfiltered film photography, Kimbra transforms life’s challenges—including her current battle with breast cancer—into powerful visual storytelling.
"Having cancer is more difficult than i ever imagined. as someone who has been fiercely independent all of my life, asking for help and resting has always felt unnatural to me. as i write this i’m currently in bed recovering from massive surgeries. everything is hard, taking photos is hard, eating is hard, i need help just putting my socks on right now."
"Everyday is different with new difficulties and surprises, i’m slowly adjusting to a foreign body, experiencing unfamiliar pains and intense sensations that are constantly changing. i’m uncomfortable nearly all the time and have very limited energy."
"being sick is very lonely and frustrating. one of the biggest challenges has been being dismissed and called crazy by people i thought were my friends. cancer has shown me who my real friends are. i feel so deeply loved and supported by the kindness from this community, the hundreds of supportive messages from strangers, friends mailing letters and bringing vegan treats. the way to my heart is handwritten notes and food. most of all i’m eternally grateful to the friends living with me for the next few months who are flying from all over the world to help me put my socks on."
I have included a poem I wrote below, it tells a bit of my history. My name Audrey comes from my great grandmother. Rita, my grandmother, passed away earlier this year from breast cancer, and Laurie, my mother, is currently battling a very aggressive form of breast cancer again.
my mothers mothers
my mothers mothers gave me life
Audrey, Rita, Laurie
we share our blood and all our love
my body tells our story
carried in each womb before
ancestral trauma built-up, stored
fed by breasts that cancer stole
malignant veins, blood was poured
take the tissue every cell
poison deep in our bones
tumors don’t belong in here
heavier than sinking stones
waiting for the day to come
sent off to the slaughter
i am them we are one
mothers sisters daughter
maternal guidance everyday
their prayers fill my chest
deepest knowledge in my soul
we all started at the breast
my mothers mothers gave me life
Audrey, Rita, Laurie
we share our blood and all our love
my body tells our story
- Kimbra Audrey
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