TWIN SISTERS AMBER MAALOUF AND ASHLIE CHAVEZ ILLUSTRATE GENERATIONS OF RESILIENCE AND CONNECTION BY PEELING BACK THE LAYERS OF THEIR FAMILY’S FARMING LEGACY.
The
Onion
Fields
by Maya Eslami
photographs by Ashlie Chavez
& Amber Maalouf
ROWS AND ROWS OF FARMLAND, rich in vegetation. An overexposed portrait of newborn heifers, lined up as if to pose. Identical twins, standing proud in their grandparents’ fields. These are the images that make up “The Onion Fields,” a collection of work by artists and photographers Ashlie Chavez and Amber Maalouf that spans 15 years, since the siblings began documenting their family’s farm. Rooted in their grandparents’ experience as migrant farmers who cultivated onions, the photographs blend intimate moments with imagery of their farm in Orland, California, illuminating the profound connections between labor, food, and heritage. For the artists, the onion is both reality and metaphor — a symbol of the layers they’ve peeled back over the years to reveal the sacrifices of their grandparents Pablo and Carmen Minor and the enduring strength of small farmers. At its heart, “The Onion Fields” is more than a tribute to their family’s legacy; it’s a call to reconnect with the roots of our food and the labor behind it. “Small-time farmers are often struggling, if not giving up entirely, because they lack the support system and financial deals that corporate farmers get,” Maalouf and Chavez tell The Rooted Journal in an email interview. “It’s so backwards.” Through their lens, the photographs offer a poignant illustration
of how resilience, empathy, and community have carried their family forward, even as the farming landscape evolves.
“LUISA’S ONION FIELD, COACHELLA” OPPOSITE: “THE ONION FARM 2”
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ISSUE 02
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