But it raises a couple of question that, probably, only I can answer … why did Mr. Kwilecki reach out to Duke University to help with his archive? I guess I know that answer – because the University of Georgia doesn’t have a photographic reputation. I want to change that so badly it hurts.
His work is exactly the sort of thing I want housed here, that I want to work with, that I want to help people see and discover.
“I am frequently asked by people who have not seen my work why I spend my life documenting one simple place like Decatur County, Georgia,” he wrote. “People confuse simple with small; they’re not the same thing.”
We may be a small program, but I certainly hope we are not simple.
They’ll say it’s a safety issue, I’ll say it’s a financial issue. They don’t want to hire more security to screen people coming in and they probably want to be able to sell more photos to you.
I try so hard not to be cynical, but then I fail … often.
Pay attention to both the subject matter and the way the images are composed – there’s more here than a primary subject, this is a great example of documentary photography that transcends the individual moments and gives you a feel for the era.
In the comments, someone using the handle union fan takes Lewkowicz to task for shooting and not helping, something that may seem like an obvious choice. It’s a hard choice, but I’d side with the photographer on this – she got a phone, insured that the 911 call was placed, then did the only thing she could to help all victims, and even this one single woman – she documented the incident, leaving no questions as to what had happened and what its impact was.
Ferrato is the woman behind the seminal book on domestic violence, Living With the Enemy.
Especially number seven – nothing drives me crazier than when a student closes their $2,000 laptop and puts down their smartphone and says, “Computers and me just don’t get along …”
As I read it, I kept substituting journalists … try it, amazing how our military and our industry are struggling with the same basic problem: helping people understand what we do and why it is important.
I want to give Alex Garcia at the Chicago Tribune an award. A plaque, a statue, name a bridge after him, something, anything, as a token of thanks for his latest Assignment Chicago blog entry.
This has become a must-read for everyone of my students. And I think maybe every student of journalism, everywhere. The thoughts are not necessarily new, but it’s so eloquent in presentation.
If your photographs can’t be be trusted because the underlying facts don’t support its face value meaning, then you’ve joined the legions of propagandists in the world. Congratulations and goodbye.
Go hang the pictures on a wall somewhere, preferably in a gallery known for conceptual art.