Sweetie and Hansom depicts a typical American family, and comments on family relationships, aging and the passage of time, the innocence of youth, the tragedy and shame of addiction, and the fragility of life. It considers the individual, the couple as a unit, and the relationships within and between family members as depicted by the two couples of different generations. The images and original text, made across a period of seven years, explore the before and the after of the tragic death of a son/a brother.