More Than Meets the Eye

San Pedro resident releases photobook of leading African-American figures and reflective quotes about mothers

What do you see when you look into your mother’s eyes? That can be a complicated answer depending on who you ask. However, San Pedro author,  Melba Binion-Sanders-Johnson, found a way to pull together a variety of answers from leading African-American political and cultural figures and marry those answers with their stunning portraits. These figures are from a variety of walks of life, ranging from entertainment, politics and the nonprofit sector. The portraits focus on the faces of the subjects with particular attention to the eyes.

Some of those featured include the well known, like retired California Sen. Diane Watson, actor Malcolm Jamal Warner, Rev. Cecil Murray, vocalist Eloise Laws, singer-songwriter Skyler Grey, director-producer Donald B. Welch, Bonnie Pointer of the Pointers and more. The first 15 pages are perhaps the most striking because they reveal a far more personal portrait of the author’s family. casually flipping through the pages you are greeted with four generations of the Binion-Sanders-Johnson family who all have similar looking eyes. It was almost as if the casual viewer were looking at a single person transition through all five phases of life. Family resemblance runs deep in the DNA.

These photographs appear like a visual interpretation of a quote Binion-Sander-Johnson uses in the prologue from scientist-inventor and peanut farmer George Washington Carver:

“How far you go in life depends on your being tender with the young, compassionate with the aged, sympathetic with the striving, and tolerant of the weak and strong. Because someday in your life, you will have been all of these.”

This is a quote that may resonate today.

What is perhaps the most stunning element of the book is that the portraits are intensely focused mostly on the eyes of the subjects whose stories are only partly told. Some of these beautiful pictures by Moses Mitchell are artfully cropped in half, giving more of a poetic glance than providing a full storyline. This is an intriguing design for storytelling. And, it should be considered as the companion to the author’s documentary series. More on that later.

If there’s a complaint to be had about this book, it’s that Through My Mother’s Eyes operates as a companion piece without its companion. The book is supposed to be paired with the docu-series but the docu-series is not here yet. As a result, there are no brief biographies in this book that helps contextualize the words of the people featured, let alone offer understanding for the uninitiated of just how important they are and the circumstances that formed the very basis of who they are.

For example, I was pleasantly surprised to find the inclusion of Toberman Neighborhood Center former executive director Gloria Lockhart. Lockhart published her own memoirs, Unmasking a Woman’s Journey in 2011 and I wrote a feature story on it. I read Lockhart’s quote in Binion-Sanders-Johnson:

“There are two pairs of eyes. First, my biological mother’s eyes, the ones that did not raise me but which held a lot of pain, sorrow and a lot of regrets. Then there are my adopted mother’s eyes, that showed me joy, ambition and creativity. These are filled with the Love of God. The combination of the two, I got what needed from both.”

I was compelled to review Lockhart’s memoir to remember the grounding experience from which her quote grew. Lockhart focused her memoirs on the most seminal and transformative events of her life that helped her break through barriers, but also included traumas that had lifelong impacts on her. In easy to read prose, Lockhart recounted the events that led to her mother separating Gloria from her siblings for what was supposed to be a short time but ended up being permanent. Lockhart was sent to live with a maternal aunt and her husband at the age of five or six years old. Reading Lockhart’s quote within this context, the words pack a particular punch and depth.

Another quote that stood out to me was one from the radio personality of KJLH, Roland Bynum, in which he say:

“My Mother didn’t raise me. When I looked into her eyes, I saw a sad person. She was fearful. But when we did finally get together, she said ‘about time you got home, boy. Welcome home.”

I was left wanting to know what made him say this.

The same was true of State Sen. Holly Mitchell, who said this about her mother:

“She was shy and insecure but blossomed into a powerhouse, and A-type personality and became a prison warden. ‘She was something else,’ [Gov.] Jerry Brown once said of her.”

Clearly there is much more alluded to than is outright told in this book which is why one becomes curious about what comes next.

Fortunately, Through My Mother’s Eyes is part of a larger  project that includes a docu-series  exploring the relationship between a mother and child. Created by Binion-Sanders-Johnson, filmmaker Chadwick L. Williams and Brownstone Entertainment, the docu-series examines the unique circumstances and relationships that make us who we are through our relationships. The questions the show asks: What do you see when you look into your mother’s eyes? If your mother were to look into your eyes, what would she see? What influence did your mother have on your life? Tell me about the last time you looked into your mother’s eyes; and tell me about your mother.

The trailer for this  docu-series promises to be a good companion to Binion-Sanders-Johnson’s book while offering insights into the lives of some of the most powerful and culturally significant Southern California-based African-American figures of our time.

About the Author

Binion-Sanders-Johnson is an actress, model, author and a 36-year practitioner and senior teacher of Bikram Hot Yoga and a certified Core Power Yoga instructor. Binion-Sanders-Johnson is also the owner of the yoga apparel line, It’s a Wrap by Melba.

About the Photographer

Moses Mitchell, an Los Angeles-based photographer responsible for the portraits in Through My Mother’s Eyes has been shooting stills since he was five years old. Reflected in the quality of his images are the years he has dedicated to cultivating his craft. Moses’ work largely reflects his concern for poverty and education, his interest in universal spiritual principles and his passion for music. This laser-like focus is reflected in his commercial and documentary projects. Clients include, Diageo, GTM, The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation, Michael Beckwith, Interscope Records, Warner Bros, CBS, LA’s BEST, HBO, MTV and BET, among others.

To purchase the book, visit https://tinyurl.com/Through-My-Mothers-Eyes. The book can be purchased in the following formats with the following ISBN numbers:

Paperback: ISBN: 978-1-950936-44-1 $29.95

E-book: ISBN: 978-1-950936-45-8 $19.95

Hardcover: ISBN: 978-1-950936-55-7 $39.95