Good Grief

Photo exhibition & book release/ Jacob M. Gottlieb

It is rare to meet someone that has lived on the same block their entire life. Irene Sorrentino is the exception. Irene has lived on Chestnut road and Bayswater boulevard for ninety two years. 

Irene was born four houses down from where she currently resides. Irene had only moved to the other side of Bayswater boulevard from her family's home when she married her husband Guitano Sorrentino, over sixty years ago.

Jacob Gottlieb spent the summer of 2017 documenting his time spent with Irene. They discussed her ability to maintain a positive perspective on life, touching on subjects regarding her poor upbringing and her modest lifestyle as a retired member of the local church administration. 

'Good Grief' is a documentarian based photography book, that showcases Irene's everyday life of playing Frédéric Chopin on piano, feeding the stray cats, and going for daily walks to watch the sun set over the Far Rockaway bay.