Afterthought | Charlotte Juergens

Afterthought is a feature documentary about COVID memorials and the people who build them. It centers on two projects. The first is the Detroit Healing Memorial, a community project involving thousands of participants. The second is an artist’s personal memorial in New York, which commemorates the loss of a single friendship— this is Laura Taylor’s memorial “Half-Built House,” also displayed in this exhibit.

Director Charlotte Juergens sees Afterthought as a memorial in itself. The film is dedicated to the two grandparents she lost during the pandemic. Afterthought is one of several pieces in this gallery that combines elements of private grief and public grief, making space for personal mourning in collective memorialization. Afterthought is still in production, and our exhibit includes a selection of initial scenes.