Join photographer Stacy Waldman Bass as she discusses her new memoir, Lightkeeper: A Memoir Through the Lens of Love and Loss, in her hometown with fellow memoirist and mentor Dani Shapiro. A luminous story of loss and resilience, Lightkeeper captures acclaimed photographer Bass’s personal journey through grief — and the art of keeping her parents’ legacy alive through memory and photography.
There will be a reception starting at 6:30 pm, with the book launch and conversation starting at 7 pm.
In 1995, when a tragic seaplane accident on Block Island claimed her father’s life, Bass’s world shattered. She began to write as a way to process her excruciating grief, while gathering the pieces of his life through collected photographs. Some twenty-five years later, her mother was diagnosed with, and ultimately died from, pancreatic cancer after a one-year battle against the harrowing disease. During her mother’s illness, Bass created a living tribute of images and words that built a community of support around her mother when she needed it most.
By collecting and sharing photographs of her parents, Michael and Jessica Waldman, Bass recognized how photographs serve not merely as records but as powerful portals into memory — gateways to the stories that exist just outside the frame. Filled with stunning prose and vibrant photography, this evocative memoir reveals how Bass became the "lightkeeper" of her family's legacy, preserving their stories for future generations. For anyone who has loved deeply and lost tragically, Lightkeeper offers both solace and inspiration — reminding us that the light of those who have been lost always endures.
Copies of Lightkeeper will be available for sale and signing at the event.
Stacy Waldman Bass is an author, artist, and photographer. From her first solo exhibition in 1988, Bass's fine artwork has become part of numerous private, corporate, and hotel collections. Her images and unique perspective continue to tap into the emotion and sensibility of a wide spectrum of viewers.
Always with an interest in all things visual, her career ambitions have taken her through numerous magazine positions, including a senior position at fine art photography startup, On Seeing. Bass is a graduate of Barnard College/Columbia University and of NYU School of Law where she concentrated on copyright, art, and entertainment law. She later used her expertise to become vice president of a publicly traded motion picture and television company, Savoy Pictures Entertainment, Inc.
Bass has been capturing the essence of place through an intuitive use of light, color and composition for almost two decades. Her signature images of architecture, interiors and gardens have resulted in three solo exhibitions and numerous awards. Her photography has been featured extensively in books and magazines including atHome (where she was lead photographer for more than 10 years), Garden Design, Luxe Interiors + Design, House Beautiful, Elle Décor, Veranda, AD, Horticulture, Living Etc., British Homes & Gardens, The Wall Street Journal, and many more. She is the author of two bestselling and critically acclaimed monographs celebrating the American landscape: In the Garden and Gardens at First Light.
Dani Shapiro is the author of 11 books, and the host and creator of the hit podcast Family Secrets. Her most recent novel, Signal Fires, was named a best book of 2022 by NPR, Time Magazine, Washington Post, Amazon, and others, and is a national bestseller. Her most recent memoir, Inheritance, was an instant New York Times best seller, and named a best book of 2019 by Elle, Vanity Fair, Wired, and Real Simple. Both Signal Fires and Inheritance were winners of the National Jewish Book Award. Shapiro’s work has been published in 14 languages and she is currently developing Signal Fires for its television adaptation. Shapiro’s book on the process and craft of writing, Still Writing, has just been reissued on the occasion of its 10th anniversary. She occasionally teaches workshops and retreats, and is the co-founder of the Sirenland Writers Conference in Positano, Italy.
