This project is a tribute to three friends I’ve known for decades. Each of them influenced me deeply, and I consider them not only friends, but also mentors. The path of my life has changed because of the unique impression each one of them made on it.

To create this project, I had each friend send me a scan of their fingerprints. These prints were then traced, scaled, and individually hand-carved into white panels. Although each panel is physically separate and contains a single print, I consider them a continuum: if they were put together graphically they would form a single unified image. Strands of color float freely across the panels, connecting them in a way that mirrors the inner connection I feel with my friends.

Below each fingerprint can be found a first name and birth year. Typically, these would identify the artist who made the piece, but if we think of how we are touched by the friends and guides we meet in life, then we ourselves are the artwork and they are ultimately the creators.

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Mikhail Margolis