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Vision(ary) | Rob Hammer

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We spoke to artist Rob Hammer about this project, Barber Shops of America, currently on view at the Griffin Museum’s annual public outdoor exhibtion, Vision(ary). An interview with the artist follows.

Rob Hammer is a documentary and commercial photographer from upstate New York. He has lived in many places throughout the USA, including California, Colorado, and currently North Carolina. Throughout his career, he has photographed some of the best athletes on the planet, like Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O’Neal, for clients such as Nike and Adidas. When not on assignment, he devotes his time to long-term documentary projects that focus on niche aspects of American culture, resulting in photography books. Barbershops of America, American Backcourts, and Roadside Meditations are a few notable examples, as well as his current project documenting real working cowboys on historic cattle ranches in the American West. He is also a dedicated fly fisherman, duck hunter, and backcountry snowboarder.

Website: www.robhammerphotography.com

Instagram: @robhammerphoto

All images © Rob Hammer. Courtesy the artist.
Map of Barber Shops photographed.

Project Statement

In the heart of our communities, where the pulse of daily life beats strongest, lies the timeless sanctuary of the neighborhood barbershop—a beautiful but dying piece of American history. This series seeks to document the spirit of these vibrant spaces that serve as more than mere grooming parlors—they are cultural landmarks, social hubs, and intimate storytellers of our collective narrative.

Each barbershop bears the unique imprint of its neighborhood, reflecting the diverse tapestry of the people it welcomes in all corners of our great country. The scent of Barbicide mingles with candid chatter, creating an atmosphere rich with camaraderie and shared experience. Here, individuals from all walks of life come together, bound by the common ritual of grooming, but leave with much more: tales exchanged, wisdom imparted, and bonds forged.

The barbers themselves, skilled artisans and confidants, are custodians of tradition, yet constantly adapt to the evolving styles and desires of their clientele. Through my photographs, I aim to preserve the essence of these barbershops as microcosms of our neighborhoods. Each image is a window into a world where generations converge, where laughter and debates resonate against the backdrop of walls steeped with a patina earned only after decades of faithful service. It is a celebration of the ordinary moments that weave the fabric of our daily lives, elevating the mundane to the extraordinary.

In an era of rapid change, these neighborhood barbershops stand as resilient anchors, embodying a sense of continuity and community. They aren’t merely a place to get a haircut; they are a refuge of authenticity in an increasingly digital world—timeless establishments that can never be replaced or duplicated.

Going into this project, Barber Shops of America, why did you choose to depict your feelings of the dying american spirit through a series of barbershops and not of another american staple?

At first it was probably just sentimental reasons that grew from my appreciation for
old school barbershops. Then the longer the project went on, it became obvious that barbershops
are such an important part of the greater American culture. If you break it down further though,
barbershops aren’t just a place to get your haircut. They are about friendship, human interaction,
and community. How can you replace an institution that grew in and with a neighborhood, town, or
city for decades? The friendships and memories that formed in each one are priceless.

Walk us through your photographic process. Did anything inspire you or impact you to create it? Did you face any challenges?

There are always challenges with a project of this size. A year or so into shooting I decided the project would only be complete if shops were documented in all 50 states of the USA. So thought
had to be given not only to funding travel, but more importantly, to the locations of these traditional
shops that have been in business for 40, 50, 60 years? Most of them don’t have a telephone number,
let alone a website or social media page. It was only through extensive travel (35k miles a year) on
back roads to small towns that I was able to find these places that have become a staple in their
communities.

How did you connect and interact with the different subjects and people in these photographs?

Each place was different. Some barbers were more than happy to spend hours
sharing their whole life story. And others did nothing more than allow me to briefly be in their shop
to take pictures. After 13+ years working on this project it’s incredible to think about the people
I’ve met and what occurred after walking through the shop doors. A number of them took me to
lunch, invited me to dinner in their homes, and in one particularly memorable case, my photograph
of a barber in Kansas was used for his obituary. It’s crazy to count how many barbers mention that
they regularly have 3 generations of families coming in for haircuts. Where else does that happen?

How did these communities that you photographed impact you?

Barbershops are a great equalizer. No matter who you are or how much money
you make, the price and service are the same. Each person is met with a friendly smile as they walk
through the door by a barber they have known their entire lives. To be a fly on the wall for those
interactions is an experience and education like no other. If you were to close your eyes and just
listen, the chatter slowly gives clues to where you are in the world. Stick around and you find out
the intricacies of each community. Candid conversations reveal so much that you’d never know otherwise and that gives you a deeper appreciation for people that live drastically different lives
from your own.

Which barbershop of the photographs in this series do you feel speaks to you the most and why?

Tony’s in Brooklyn has been a working barbershop for over 200 years! It’s a special
place. Of the 1000’s of barbershops I’ve been in, none compare to the feeling that Tony’s offers. The
place is so weathered with age that you might think it’s a movie set. Unfortunately Tony passed
away recently, but he moved here from Italy decades ago, and worked his whole life as a barber
supporting his family. It was sad to hear of Tony’s passing, but I’m grateful to have documented his
time capsule of a shop so his legacy can live on.

What equipment did you use the most during the series?

That’s changed a lot. For a long time I only shot on Nikon, but switched completely
over to Sony about 4 years ago. In the beginning I was actually using strobes to light but noticed
that they ruined the unique feeling each shop offered. After that realization I stripped it back to two
cameras and two lenses. Some combinaton of a wide and a longer lens. In general I think people
obsess too much about the gear. Just go out and shoot. The more you have the more it slows you
down and causes you to overthink everything.

Please tell us the stories behind these three photographs and why you chose to click the shutter at that exact moment.

Ⅰ. McLean’s Barbershop – Hyannis, MA.
The color palette and textures of this shop are awesome. Very little has changed there
since they opened decades ago. I love this photograph because it shows a very quiet
moment between two old friends. It’s so subtle that you might not even notice their
smiles if you look too quickly. It defines the relationship that exists between a barber and
customer(friend) that has sat in his chair once a month for his whole life.


II. Cuts and Bends Barbershop – Oakland, CA
Kenneth is such an interesting guy. He loves to read books, which is why his shop is
literally filled with them. The shop is a direct reflection of him. It’s also a second home.
You’ll never see another shop like his. There is so much happening in there, but you can
also feel his calming presence in this photograph.


Ⅲ. Syndicate Barbershop – Long Beach, CA

Compared to some of the other shops in this series, Syndicate is fairly new, but it’s a 1/1. Incredible shop. This photo was taken during their 20 year anniversary party. So many people from the local community and beyond came out to show their support. Which is a huge testament to the relationships that have grown there over the years. It’s fun to think about places like Syndicate having their 40th, 50th, 60th year anniversary parties

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Vision(ary) | Susan Lapides’ St. George: Ebb and Flow

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We talked to Susan Lapides about her project Ebb and Flow documenting the Bay of Fundy’s and ecosystem. The project captures the region’s unpredictable tidal changes with great force and beauty, offering a unique look to the lives of the peoples living with the ebb and flow of the tides. Currently on view at our annual public outdoor exhibition, Vision(ary).

Instagram: @susanlapides

Website: www.susanlapides.com

An interview with the artist follows.

All images © Susan Lapides. Courtesy the artist.
Project Statement

St. George: Ebb & Flow is my tribute to the residents of a rural community on the Bay of Fundy, home to the highest tides in the world. I return each summer to this place I love, curious about what’s changed. As a fine art photographer with skills learned as a professional editorial photographer, I was inspired to document this moment in time—especially the transitions in the age-old fishing industries as they rapidly reinvent themselves to keep pace with climate change and global demands. Each year I return with a fresh perspective, seeking to find intimate moments that feel iconic to the maritime experience: the deep connection to the natural world, the rhythm of the tides, and the mesmerizing, shifting beauty. This project evolved to create an in-depth feeling of the human presence in New Brunswick, Canada. Many thanks to the community for opening their doors and sharing their stories.

Please describe your photographic process, your editing process, and what type of gear you carried around with you the most during this project.

“Evening Walk” and  Granite Town are a few of the earliest photographs in this series, captured in 2006 and 2007 using a Mamiya 645 camera. Shortly thereafter, due to the challenges of accessing film and processing in New Brunswick, I transitioned to digital photography. Different 35mm cameras as the technology improves, using a 24-70mm zoom lens, alongside a long zoom lens that remains in my bag 98% of the time.

Due to the constant shift of the tides, the water remains at 50 degrees even in mid-summer, distinguishing this area from typical beach communities. Boating here demands a keen awareness of tides and currents.

What particularly about the maritime environment do you find the most intimate?

The term ‘Maritimes,’ used to describe Canada’s eastern provinces, conjures images of water and nature. The Bay of Fundy, with its expansive skies and mesmerizing play of light and color, never fails to captivate me. The constant movement of its 26-foot tides, ebbing and flowing every 6 hours, reveals the ocean floor and then blankets the beach anew. In St. George, residents deeply appreciate this natural beauty while also respecting its power: the tides are formidable, the currents unpredictable, and the coastal ledges pose hazards.

While working on this project, how did you develop the connection you have now with both the residents of the community and the environment?

St. George, New Brunswick, Canada, is a small town where everyone knows each other, often connected through distant relations. When my family arrived 20 years ago, we were outsiders, but the community welcomed us warmly. Making friends and connections happened organically through the tight-knit community.

How do you think that your work/photos impacted the community and how did it help you grow as an artist? 

This photographic body of work is the result of listening to the community’s stories about the changes they’ve experienced. I aimed to create a lasting document that preserves the collective memory of the people and industries of St. George and New Brunswick. My goal was to produce a document that residents will cherish and share as they pass down their stories to future generations.

I am deeply honored and thrilled that this summer, 2024, John Leroux, manager of collections and exhibitions at Beaverbrook Art Gallery, is exhibiting this work. And in collaboration with Goose Lane Editions, they will be publishing ‘St. George: Ebb &Flow’ this summer.

Out of the photos of this series, which one photo resonates the most with you and your personal experience and why? 

Evening Walk — A front swept through, pushing a bank of clouds across the bay with strong gusts. Peter and our daughter, who was outside playing lacrosse, hurried up onto the point, with Daisy bounding alongside them. I grabbed my Mamiya, but realizing I couldn’t catch up, I stopped in the field above and captured just one frame. Then I stood looking upward watching the storm race onward.

Salmon Factor — Madonna is my nickname for this photo. For this project, I aimed to document the fishing industry, both on the water and in the factories. I particularly cherish the moment captured of the woman laughing on the left side of the frame, perhaps reacting to the photographer’s presence. Another woman, with her head tilted and covered in a green hoodie, appears almost biblical in her contemplation. Deep in thought, she seems unaware of my presence, diligently trimming each fillet as it moves down the conveyor belt.

Floating — For many of us, scuba diving is a recreational sport, but diving to install and repair salmon cages or herring weirs or the underside of ship hulls requires an industry that meets the demands of working divers. It’s inherently risky work. In this photograph, Warrick is taking a moment to relax after removing his tank, weight belt, and mask.

About the artist

Susan Lapides is an American photographic artist renowned for her exploration of community dynamics and sense of place through time-based projects. Through her portraits and landscapes, Lapides delves into social, cultural, and community dynamics. A graduate of Tufts University/School of the Museum of Fine Arts, Lapides embarked on a distinguished career as an editorial photographer on assignment for esteemed publications such as Smithsonian, Life, Time, Forbes, The New York Times, and People. She has received awards from the American Society of Media Photographers and has photographed notable figures including President Barack Obama. After 30 years, she transitioned from a career as a documentary photographer to emerge as a fine art photographer.

Lapides has held solo exhibitions at venues such as Sunbury Shores and Beaverbrook Art Gallery in New Brunswick, Canada, and the Griffin Museum of Photography in Winchester, Massachusetts. Her work has been featured in group exhibitions at Foley Gallery in New York City, the Newport Art Museum, Brand Library and Art Center in Los Angeles, CA, and Oceanside Museum in San Diego, CA. Lapides’ photographs are housed in numerous private and public collections.

Currently residing in Cambridge, Massachusetts, Lapides splits her time between her urban base and the coastal community of St. George, New Brunswick, where she finds inspiration for her ongoing artistic endeavors.

Vision(ary) | Angela Rowlings

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Angela Rowlings (she/her) is a documentary and portrait photographer based in Boston, Mass. and Prince Edward Island, Canada, where she has been documenting the intersection of culture and climate. We had the chance to speak to hear about her career photographing Boston’s diverse cultural festivals. Her project documenting New England’s first all-female mariachi band is on view at the Griffin’s annual outdoor exhibition, Vision(ary).

Website: https://angelarowlings.photoshelter.com/index

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/angelarowlings

About her project

Veronica Robles is a mariachi singer, musician, and folkloric dancer who co-founded and directs the Veronica Robles Cultural Center (VROCC), a space dedicated to programming for arts and culture for Boston’s Latino community while also welcoming residents of all backgrounds. Veronica, who has performed mariachi music since she was a teen in Mexico City, realized her dream of starting New England’s first all-female mariachi band. She balances her community work at VROCC with an increasing number of mariachi performances. Veronica says her work honors the memory of her daughter, Kithzia, who passed away as a teen.

While documenting many events around Boston for more than 20 years, I have witnessed Veronica showing up for the community consistently and enthusiastically in many ways. Through the arts, she has helped to foster a sense of cultural pride in Boston’s youth with Latin American heritage. She exudes warmth and acts as a bridge between these cultures and the broader Boston community by organizing events such as her annual Día de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) celebration and offering dance, music, entrepreneurship, and leadership classes. Her love of community shown via music and dance mirrors my own that’s expressed photographically.

Running a successful cultural center while simultaneously leading an all-women mariachi band with a full calendar of events is no easy feat. My photos are meant to pay tribute to Veronica’s contributions and offer inspiration to others, particularly women, who are trying to juggle all that life brings us.

Veronica Robles, center, and members of her all-female mariachi band help each other get ready to perform during the VIP recepion for Immersive Frida Kahlo in Boston on February 9, 2022.
What inspired you to create this project, and how do you personally connect to your work? What do you hope to get out of it? 

I met Veronica Robles long ago while working on a different project. After photographing many of her organization’s events over the years, I thought, why haven’t I done a project about Veronica herself? She’s amazing and gives so much to various communities in and around Boston. She saw a need for cultural education and decided to fill it. VROCC offers dance and music classes for youth, but they’ve expanded to offer various types of business and cultural workshops for adults as well. Meanwhile, Veronica also founded an all-female mariachi band made up of women from different cultures. One of my favorite things about being a photographer is meeting incredible people and learning new things while documenting their lives.

Veronica Robles performs with her all-female mariachi band during the VIP recepion for Immersive Frida Kahlo in Boston on February 9, 2022.
Do you believe this project helped you grow as an artist and how?

As an independent photojournalist, you have the liberty to photograph the way you want, in theory. However, there are paid assignments, editing, research for other projects, grant writing, and life to juggle at the same time. Sometimes you can’t photograph a part of the story due to scheduling conflicts, so you must seek alternative ways to tell the story. It’s taught me to check in frequently with the people I’m photographing. The best way to cover a story is by showing up and talking with people face to face. People open up so much more when you’re present.

What photographic and editing process did you go about using? What type of gear do you bring most often with you during these series?

I photograph with one DSLR and one mirrorless camera and two or three lenses. To me, the gear is less important than paying attention to light and anticipating moments. My background working at newspapers forced me to photograph in all types of light. Sometimes key moments happen in the worst light and you must find a way to make something beautiful in tough situations. When editing, I select images that both advance the narrative and help the collective piece flow. Sometimes it’s necessary to eliminate a favorite photo because it’s repetitive or has a similar feel to another.

An altar honoring loved ones, including Kithzia López-Robles, daughter of Veronica Robles, is a part of the Día de los Muertos celebration at the Veronica Robles Cultural Center on October 30, 2021 in East Boston, Massachusetts. Robles has dedicated her community work in memory of her daughter.
How do you think or hope these photographs will impact its viewers?

Veronica is someone who has faced challenges as many people do, yet she is constantly inventing opportunities for herself and the community around her. She pushes herself creatively and professionally and encourages others to grow. Although her focus is on programming, education, and events in the Latinx community, she brings her music and dance to everyone and offers a welcoming environment for people of all backgrounds. Hopefully viewers get a glimpse of her life and will be inspired by her creativity and generosity of participation in Boston and surrounding areas.

Veronica Robles, left, and members of her all-female mariachi band return to their dressing room after performing in the VIP recepion for Immersive Frida Kahlo in Boston on February 9, 2022.
How do you go about interacting and connecting to your subject? 

I’ve known Veronica for most of my career, so we already had a friendly connection prior to this project. Coming from a background covering news, I prefer when people don’t pay attention to me or my cameras as I work, since my goal is to capture authentic scenes. During longer projects, there is often downtime between photographing moments. I use this time to ask questions or chat with people I’m photographing to get to know them and have them get to know me a bit.

Which three photographs of this series personally speak the most volume to you as the photographer?

My favorite photo is of Veronica singing during the Día de los Muertos event as a man hugs his son. The man had recently lost his father and embraced the child in a touching moment. Veronica dancing through the streets of East Boston with the children captures her relationship with the community. And the photo of Veronica facing the clouds shows a dreamer at work. Veronica is always pushing herself out of her comfort zone, trying new things, and uplifting others.

Vision(ary) | Sandy Hill: American Lawn Decor

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Posted on June 24, 2024 (Edit)

Sandy Hill‘s charming portrayal of quirky and sometimes surreal world of yard decorations across New England and New York are not simply a light-hearted invitation to see yards as canvases for personal and cultural expression. As the artist notes, they are also windows into the lives of those who create them.

We had the opportunity to talk to the artist about her project, American Lawn Decor, currenly on view in our exhibition Vision(ary), on view through Septemver 15, 2024.

Sandy Hill grew up in a small town in Northeastern Ohio. The natural beauty as well as the rustic farms in the area provided the inspiration for her interest in photography. In fact, her first newspaper cover was taken at one of these farms and later a significant photography project revolved around an old family farm in upstate New York while she studied Documentary Photography at RIT.

Hill was a photographer for several daily newspapers and a wire service in the greater Boston area. She was also a public relations photographer for the University of Rochester. She had a solo exhibit in winter of 2021/2022 at The Griffin Museum of Photography called “The Gift”.

Her work has been included in multiple juried exhibits including several by the Griffin Museum and The Curated Fridge. The South X Southeast Gallery, The Southeast Center for Photography, Lenscratch, RIT Honor Show, and The Center for Fine Art Photography have also included her photographs in exhibits.

Her current work in portraiture has grown out of her interest in illustrating the stories of different people and learning about different cultures as well as a curiosity about others.

Website: https://sandyhillphoto.com/work

Instagram: @sandy_hill_photography

American Lawn Decor

After a tumultuous year filled with isolation and conflict I decided to search for the innocence and optimism that I’ve always associated with our country, even as we hold different views, beliefs or backgrounds. I found signs of this in the joy of yards adorned with unique decorations. The many different perspectives on what constitutes beauty or humor continue to intrigue and draw me to a door to find out who lives or works there. Rarely have the residents turned down my request for a quick portrait, and they stand with dignity and pride, humor or mystery, near a fictional world created for us to enjoy.

My intention was to avoid judgment. Rather I felt the need to search for a connection to people who share my country, and regardless of beliefs, views or background chose to celebrate life during a pandemic and beyond.

I continue to work on this project and I hope to extend the area I cover beyond the New England and New York regions.

This work was inspired by a desire to renew my own hopes and optimism for our country by looking beyond the headlines and finding a positive commonality. It is also my hope that these photographs can perhaps help us realize that we can find connections even during times that seem to be driving us apart.

We can find ways to appreciate one another even if it’s something as simple as a lawn decoration.

What inspired you to create this project, and how do you personally connect to your work? What you hope to get out of it and grow as an artist. 

I was inspired to start these portraits during Covid as a way to step away from social media and television’s perspective of our population, and to connect with people (while masking and safely distancing). It gradually morphed into a project about finding something positive to focus on in others instead of differences and flaws. I hoped to regain some optimism for our country and humanity. I grew to recognize that we need to find ways to get past differences and headlines and find ways to connect to others even as they hold different opinions and backgrounds.


What type of camera and gear do you bring most often with you during these series? 

My Nikon usually, or sometimes a little Olympus I keep with me for spontaneous shots

How do you think or hope these photographs will impact its viewers?

Ideally, I really hope they help viewers to step away from the hate, anger and judgement so prevalent in our times, and recognize the joy of humanity in others. I feel it is so important for our country to figure out how to overcome the divisiveness and remember how to talk to one another with respect, and maybe a start would be appreciating something as simple as creativity with lawn decor. This is also just a small attempt to celebrate something light and fun during dark times.

Which three photographs of this series personally speak the most volume to you as the photographer and what in your mind makes a good photograph?

I think what defines a photograph that I feel good about taking includes something beyond just the surface appeal. It can vary widely from news images to street photography, fine art and documentary. Ultimately I know it when I see it or feel an emotional response to it.

1. The woman by the fence:

2. The man with the Statue of Liberty because of the uniqueness of the decor and his obvious pride:

3. The woman with the flamingos was very kind to let me photograph her. She’d recently suffered a terrible loss and the flamingos were connected to that. So that image speaks to me of loss, love and strength during hard times. It is what I consider the strongest image because of the resilience and love I see in it. I feel it speaks to the times and what we need now more than ever

Vision(ary): Cheryl Clegg: The Endangered Lobstermen

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We had the pleasure of speaking to Vision(ary) artist, Cheryl Clegg about her adventures photographing lobster fishermen along the coasts of Maine.

Cheryl Clegg graduated with a BFA from the Rochester Institute of Technology and chose Boston to start her photography career. During Cheryl’s time in the Boston area she has maintained a commercial photography studio for over 30 years, and has continued to pursue personal projects. Cheryl’s work has appeared in newspapers, annual reports, magazines, billboards, and catalogs. Cheryl’s personal work has been included in many juried group exhibitions including ASmith Gallery, Vermont Center for Photography, Davis Orton Gallery, Texas Photo Society, SE Center for Photography, Praxis Photo Arts Center. Solo exhibitions have included Schoodic Arts for All (Maine), The Wotiz Gallery & Newton Library (Mass.). Cheryl resides in Newton, MA & Corea, Maine with her husband & 5 kids.

Website: www.cleggphoto.com
Follow Cheryl Clegg on Instagram: @cherylcleggphoto

The Endangered Lobstermen

The Endangered Lobstermen is a series of portraits depicting the men, women, and children who lobster fish off the coast of Maine. They face the risk of losing their livelihood and way of life due to changes and challenges in the lobster industry. Each lobster boat operates as an individual business, with fishers self-employed and navigating these challenges while grappling with the uncertainty of lobstering’s future profitability. This ongoing series documents the families in Maine’s lobstering villages, showcasing the human side of the industry amidst new regulations and the impacts of climate change.

Let’s start talking about the intersection of photography and preserving family legacy. How do you feel about being a photographer documenting a long line of lobster fishermen? And what aspects of this generational connection do you find most compelling to document?

Cheryl Clegg: My immediate thought is, as photographers isn’t that what we do? Preserve family legacies? Give it our own family or if we are taking family portraits for others we are preserving a moment in time and documenting the family for future generations. I love seeing all of the generations together and to hear the stories. One long timefishermen’s comments: “I was six years old baiting bait bags for my grandfather right here in Wonsqueak Harbor.”  To give you an idea as to how large Wonsqueak Harbor is- if you blink while driving out of Schoodic National Park, you have missed it. The fact that the lobstering tradition and way of life  is passed down from generation to generation is unique in our society today.  In some of the families I have met, lobstering goes as far back as 7 or 8 generations.  I think this is unique in today’s society.

Guide us through your photographic process. How do you interact with your subjects when preparing a photoshoot? And how do you portray the sense of kinship and camaraderie among these individuals?

CC: My feeling is that every person or group of people are different and in most cases I have a very short time to connect with people. I tend to work fast, as people are busy and don’t have much time (or attention span) to be in front of the camera.  When you get a group of people together that know each other, they fall into place.  My hope is that their familial relationships with each other will come through visually.

Thinking about the loss of the photograph as an object and your project being about conservation and resilience, do you think it’s important to give these pictures to the people you photograph as a token of family history and preservation?

CC: Yes, I do think it is important for the families to have these pictures for their own personal family archives.  I hope that the files I have given them are printed and hanging in their homes.

You mention in your statement that “the Maine lobster industry is facing a multitude of challenges.” Which ones do you sense are the most pressing for these communities at the moment?

CC: The challenges the lobstermen face, be it off shore wind (which takes up ocean space & potentially affect the natural aqua culture), climate change or regulations to protect the endangered right whale are immediate and ongoing.  New regulations and closures are not just in the distant future, just last week there was an increase to the size of catchable lobsters.

How has photographing these communities impacted you personally? Have there been any moments or stories that particularly resonated with you during your project?

CC: I think each story that I hear is impactful. The families are tight knit and lobstering is a way of life, starting at a very young age. One of the most heart wrenching stories I have heard was a young father who said, “This small fishing town has given me opportunities in my life that I never thought I would have. When I found out I was going to be a father, this town helped me to overcome addiction of prescription pain killers. Lobster fishing has given me the opportunity to provide for myself, my two children, my stepson and it has allowed me to become a foster parent to my nephew.
Without the lobster industry there are no other options for me to provide for my family in the community or the surrounding communities.”

As you photograph these communities throughout the years, have you already started to notice the impacts of climate change through your interactions with these people and with the environment?

CC: Yes. I have seen the impact of the tidal surges. This past January, the astronomical high tides caused severe damage.  Fishermen’s warfs (where their lobster traps are stored and where they work on gear) and work shacks washed out to sea all along the coast. Many are rebuilding, but many are not, changing how they work or for some changing how they make a living.

What have been the biggest challenges throughout the execution of this project?

CC: I’d say one of my biggest challenges is making sure I have the correct information and creating awareness for the industry outside of the state of Maine.

If you don’t mind us asking, how do you handle seasickness?

CC:  I have gone out to haul quite a few times but have never acquired my “sea legs.”  I do pay the price for being on the boat, that is for sure. My trick for these photos….most are shot on shore or close to shore.

John Chervinsky Emerging Artist Scholarship Award | Bridget Jourgensen

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The Griffin Museum of Photography is thrilled to announce the winner of the 2024 John Chervinsky Emerging Photographer Scholarship, Bridget Jourgensen. Her series Homeshadows captivated this year’s jury to earn her a monetary award, an upcoming exhibition and artist talk at the Griffin Museum as well as a volume from the collection of photographer John Chervinsky.

Over 281 photographers submitted applications to be considered for the scholarship this year. The jurors, Arlette and Gus Kayafas, Frazier King and Bruce Myren have selected Bridget Jourgensen as the 2024 recipient of the John Chervinsky Emerging Photographer Scholarship.

Wrist
Light Switch
Fan

The exhibition of Homeshadows will be December 11, 2024 – January 5, 2025. We will announce programs and artist reception later this fall.

Homeshadows is a study of solitude.  Over the course of a year and at the height of the pandemic in 2020, I found myself in a new home and very much alone on a day-to-day basis.   As an introvert and sometimes anxious person, it was a bit of a dream come true.  But while I wasn’t exactly lonely, I was yearning to use my time creatively and feel connected to something while the world outside raged.    I began to document the light and shadows that streamed through the windows of my house.  Everything in my home was new to me, and I had the pleasure of watching the seasons unfold from the inside.  I sometimes put myself in the images to round out the developing narrative.  I worked to capture light and manage composition with great attention to mood and detail in order to convey the sense of solitude, beauty, and mystery that I was experiencing during this period of time.  Although I had been taking photographs for many years, this was my first intentional series and attempt at cohesive storytelling through images.

About Bridget Jourgensen: 

My love of photography began as a young girl leafing through my mother’s Vogue magazines and feeling enthralled by the lush images within. As a pre-teen I made images of my family with a Kodak Instamatic 100, and documented the mundane details of my day-to-day life. It seemed that everything looked more glamorous printed on 4×4 squares, accompanied by strips of eerie negatives. I was hooked.

As an adult photographing a world which is increasingly complex, my lens seeks out simple, quiet subjects that are familiar yet presented in a distinctive way. Influenced by the work of Vivian Maier, Gordon Parks, and Sally Mann, I’m drawn to photographing people in the world around me. Whether that world is within my own four walls or a country I’ve never stepped foot in, my desire to observe others is the foundation for a great deal of my work. By sharing my images, I hope to spark human connections and emphasize our commonality through a moment captured in time.

About the John Chervinsky Emerging Photographer Scholarship

Photographer John Chervinsky, whose work explored the concept of time, passed away in December of 2015, following a typically resolute battle with pancreatic cancer. The modesty and unassuming character John conveyed in life belies the extent to which he is missed, not only by his family and friends, but also by the entire photographic community of which he was so proud to be a part. The John Chervinsky Emerging Photographer Scholarship was announced in June 2016 to recognize, encourage and reward photographers with the potential to create a body of work and sustain solo exhibitions. Awarded annually, the Scholarship provides recipients with a monetary award, an exhibition of their work at the Griffin Museum of Photography, and a volume from John’s personal library of photography books. The Scholarship seeks to provide a watershed moment in the professional lives of emerging photographers, providing them with the support and encouragement necessary to develop, articulate and grow their own vision for photography.

We extend our gratitude and thanks to our jurors for their work in reviewing submissions and selecting our winner, and thank you to the artists who submitted their work for consideration.

Vision(ary) | Chen Tianqiutao

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For this interview, we talked to Chen Tianqiutao about his project Seen/Unseen, currently on view as part of our annual outdoor exhibition, Vision(ary).

Website: www.chentqt.com
Instagram: @chentqt

© Chen Tianqiutao
© Chen Tianqiutao. Handwriting by Zhang Ziyue: Hometown is fun. I can hold my niece and play with her. There are many brothers and sisters who like me. Beijing is not fun, not as good as hometown. Because it is so boring to be away from my sisters.
Tianqiutao, we are honored to be showcasing your project Seen/Unseen as part of our annual outdoor public installation, Vision(ary). Please tell us, what inspired you to create this series of portraits of migrant children?

Tianqiutao Chen: When I was in China, I used to be a voluntary photographer for an NGO called Vibrant Future which provided afterschool programs for the migrant children in Beijing. I established associations with the kids during my service in two migrant villages and started photographing them.

After documenting the children for some time, I felt that I could never capture the essence of their lives, and what they were experiencing, so I decided to develop this project using photography as a participatory field research method and social practice, collaborating with the kids and enabling them to tell their own stories photographically.

© Chen Tianqiutao. Handwriting by Zhang Ao: Beijing is very good, just that the environment is too bad. I had a good time in hometown. Every year I went back there, I would collect corns and catch fish in rivers with my friends.
It’s incredibly powerful that you also taught these children the basics of photography and supplied them with disposable film cameras to document their daily lives. What did you envision the impact of these photos would bring them, their community and the viewers? 

TC: Through taking snapshots, the kids paid a little more attention to the “everyday” and practiced capturing meaningful moments and stories, which cultivated their self-expression and visual storytelling abilities. More importantly, they became more confident as creative individuals.

The photos taken by the children showcasing their daily lives provided the viewers with first-person perspectives of those true insiders, which were often unseen. Our collaboration and several resulting exhibitions brought more exposure and public attention to the migrant people in Beijing and mobilized more social support and services for their community.

© Chen Tianqiutao. Handwriting by Zhang Rong: It’s not good here, I eat and drink a lot everyday, can not feel the happiness of a kid living in mountains. It’s hard to walk on the sinuous paths in my hometown, but it feels happy to smell the sweet scent of fruit in fall.
We love that you’re touching on how art can bring about social change. When working on a project with minors and complex social issues, it’s inevitable to run into difficulties. Could you please share any challenges or setbacks you encountered?

TC: Planning and organizing this collaboration in the early stage were challenging. I had to go back and forth, negotiating with the NGO, so I could utilize their space to meet with the children and have access to more potential participants. Recruiting was also not easy. I had to talk with not only the kids but also their parents to let them know who I was and what we were planning to do. Some parents didn’t want their children to be “distracted” from their schoolwork, but luckily, most of them were open and supportive.

How did you approach or interact and connect with the children as you photographed them in their everyday environments?

TC: The portraits I took for the children were also collaborative endeavors. I asked them to decide where they wanted to be photographed, choosing the environment and background. They would take me to places that they thought were significant to them. For instance, some chose the road to school, the back alley of their houses, or where their homes used to be. After they had decided on the background, I would take portraits for them as a cold observer.

© Chen Tianqiutao. Handwriting by Wu Jinge: Beijing is interesting. I feel carefree here. I play with my friends everyday. My parents are very considerate. I feel lonely in hometown because my brothers and friends don’t play with me.
It’s great to hear this project honored these children’s sense of agency. Could you please share what you learned from them, their experiences and their communities?

TC: Our collaboration allowed me to gain a more well-rounded observation and deeper understanding of the complicated living conditions and social status of the migrant people community in China’s urban centers. I’m impressed by the children’s straightforward and unfiltered visual recordings of their lives. Their photographs showcased a lot of vivid and intimate moments as well as many compelling and unique vantage points, which I could never reach and capture. Also, this project helped me investigate the possibilities of photography and explore its boundaries with social practice and activism.

© Chen Tianqiutao. Handwriting by Song Shuo: I feel bored. Lonely. School is boring.
In addition to the photographs, you chose to have the children write about themselves in accompanying text pieces. What can we learn about these narratives?

TC: The text and photos are reciprocal to each other. The written pieces helped articulate their true thoughts and reflect the complexity of China’s urbanization causing their displacement. All the photographs the children took showed their curiosity and passion for the world. However, they did have different and sometimes opposite opinions and feelings about being displaced in Beijing, away from their hometowns. Some of the kids disliked their living conditions, feeling lonely and bored in Beijing, whereas some enjoyed where they were, being able to blend in and make new friends in Beijing.

© Chen Tianqiutao. Handwriting by Zou Wanhui: School life is fun. I have good time. I go to school with good friends everyday. We share good stuff and we also share knowledge learned at school. I will study even harder in the future .

Chen Tianqiutao is an artist and educator working in China and the United States. Chen earned a BFA in Photography from the Central Academy of Fine Arts in Beijing and received an MFA in Photography and an MA in Art + Design Education from the Rhode Island School of Design.

Chen’s work has been exhibited nationally and internationally, including at the Center for Photography at Woodstock (Woodstock, NY), ClampArt (New York, NY), Photographic Center Northwest (Seattle, WA), Rhode Island Center for Photographic Arts (Providence, RI), Figge Art Museum (Davenport, IA), Minneapolis College of Art and Design (Minneapolis, MN), CAFA Art Museum (Beijing, China), Minsheng Art Museums (Beijing, China), DongGang International Photo Festival (Yeongwol, South Korea), Taipei International Photo Festival (Taipei, Taiwan), and Copenhagen Photo Festival (Copenhagen, Denmark), among others. His work was selected for the 2022 Critical Mass Top 50. His photobook The Last Post won the Lucie Photo Book Prize for the Independent Publishing Category and was shortlisted for the Images Vevey Book Award.

Currently, Chen is a Visiting Assistant Professor of Art in the Department of Art and Art History at Knox College in Galesburg, Illinois.

Interview by Vicente Isaias and Anya Wallace

Vision(ary) | Laila Nahar: Living With The Tides — The Sundarbans

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“I might be physically close or far from the subject, but when I am successful in my photography I am never spiritually separated.” — Laila Nahar

Laila Nahar and collaborator Tanveer Khondker take us to the world’s largest contiguous mangrove ecosystem in this exclusive interview about her project, Living With The Tides. The images majestically capture the time-stopping and elemental beauty of Bangladesh’s Padma River Delta’s Sundarbans.

Follow on Instagram: @naharlaila

All images © Laila Nahar. Courtesy the artist.
What initially drew you to the Sundarbans and what sparked your fascination with the Padma River Delta?

My background from Bangladesh continues to shape my artistic identity and my work goes back to my roots in the Indian subcontinent, namely Bangladesh and India. While I was growing up, I was naturally getting fascinated with the Sundarbans – the world’s largest contiguous mangrove ecosystem shared by Bangladesh and India at the southernmost edge of the Bengal Delta. The same applies for my interest with the Padma. The rivers and rivulets, emerging primarily from the Ganga-Padma flow, create this incredible weave of land and water that is the mark of the delta – Bangladesh. There in the delta, along the shores of the Padma, where things are raw, elemental and primitive in the best sense. Water is everywhere and everything. The people of this delta are the Bangalis. I am a part of this delta and this is what has shaped me.

Due to the course of life and norm of the time, I got into engineering. Eventually, I migrated to the USA to continue higher studies in the field. My fascination for photography travelled with me. As any other immigrant having an American dream, I decided to settle in this country and started a job in the high-tech industry. I found myself getting nostalgic for Bangladesh, searching for my soul and questioning myself. I had questions — Can I still connect myself to Bangladesh? How can I reveal that human landscape which for me has never faded? I have been visiting Bangladesh every year, trying to re-discover my carefree days and reclaiming the land and its people and continuing my exploration of collective memories. This was the time when I made multiple journeys to the Sundarbans – this immense tidal jungle covering a mosaic of islands separated by a thousand winding creeks and rivers. My interest only grew stronger for this ever-changing but fragile habitat. Over time, Living with the tides – The Sundarbans became the handmade artist photo book of the Sundarbans.

It is beautiful to hear that you consider yourself to be part of the land. This begs me to question, how would you describe the relationship between the people and the Sundarbans environment? And what role do the local communities play in this landscape?

The Sundarbans plays an important role in the economy and livelihood of the southwestern region of Bangladesh and the Indian State of West Bengal. For Bangladesh, it is the largest single source of forest produce. People started living near the Sundarbans more than 220 years back when the colonial British administration decided to cut the forest down. Workers from other regions of the then Indian subcontinent were brought in claiming the area as laborers and agrarians. After 1875, when more than half of the Sundarbans had already been cleared, the remnants of the jungle gained protection as a reserved forest under the administration of the Forest Department. The Forest Department manages and controls commercial exploitations of the Sundarbans, mainly with the aim of sustaining the economic benefit extracted from the forest and conserving the eco-system. The population density is still rising; people living near the Sundarbans are primarily woodcutters, fishermen or honey collectors.

Many varieties of economically valuable trees and shrubs grow in the Sundarbans forest. Mangrove wood, the raw material for house and boat-building, hardboard, charcoal, furniture and fuel wood, is the most important forest produce. The wood-cutters, known locally as ‘bawalis’, use axes for cutting down the trees and live on wooden barges anchored in close proximity to each other, forming temporary floating camps. When the barges are fully loaded, the men pull them out of the small creeks by ropes and sheer muscle power. With the help of the tides and oars the loads are transported upstream. The varied environmental conditions in the Sundarbans provide a rich habitat for fish, mollusks and crustaceans. The fish stock is so abundant that no great effort was required to get an adequate catch. The honey collectors, locally called ‘mowalis’, search for wild honey and wax in the forest – which is one of the most strenuous activities. Traditionally, most people dependent on forest resources follow unwritten laws and rely on protective rituals. But as the population of the neighboring districts rises steadily, so does the number of livelihoods the forest must sustain.

People entering the Sundarbans are exposed continually to danger: encounters with tigers, crocodiles, sharks and poisonous snakes, as well as river pirates. Natural calamities – storms, cyclones, whirlpools and tidal bores – pose another threat. The people here live in connection with the jungles and rivers all around them. They ask goddess Bonbibi for protection. Old, experienced people believe that their best defense against any harm in the Sundarbans is a devout, god-fearing life, a clear mind, respect, and the sparing use of the forest resources. 

You mention in your statement how fascinated you are by the “secretive splendor” and the sense of time slowing down in the Sundarbans. … Are there any specific times of day or weather conditions you gravitate to over others?

The magic of the mangrove swamps had me in its grip. Suspended and still, the mist fills the spaces between the mangrove and the water reflects the physical experience: the mystery of the forest, the heron walking on the edge of the water, few spotted deer grazing quiet, a kingfisher leading the boats on, or the prickling sense of heightened awareness. This is how I intend to make the viewer feel the slowing of time. The mist fills the gaps to show the spaces between, as if we can slip through and escape time itself. Those who have not experienced a mangrove swamp of this dimension will find it difficult to comprehend what the Sundarbans could offer. 

I loved the physical experience of going by the creeks in the quiet of the morning or evening when I’m there. The sensation of everything is ‘In Stillness’ and that time has slowed down and that the forest and everything within it exists in a different state. Somehow set apart from our usual perception of linear time as the wind drops, the air cools, all is quiet and still and the forest draws in. It was like moment of eternity and stillness in passing by the winding creeks and rivers, immerged into fog and plucking strands of lives in ever-changing habitat. The forest is always present, binding the mangroves, water and the habitats. 

I had John Berger in my mind as he described in his book Hold Everything Dear: Dispatches on Survival and Resistance: “A forest is what exists between its trees, between its dense undergrowth and its clearings, between all its life cycles and their different time-scales…A forest is a meeting place between those who enter it and something unnameable and attendant…Something intangible and within touching distance. Neither silent nor audible.”

In the handmade book Living With The Tides – The Sundarbans, the focus was to show the slowing of the time in the Sundarbans and its mysteries. I showed the fragility through the structures of eight Leoporello panels attached loose and opening on either side, exploring the quietness of the mangrove ecosystem. I printed text on a layer of translucent vellum covering the image of the ‘mangrove and boat’ prints on Japanese paper on background; depending on how the vellum is held, the text will appear to go out of focus and so does the image depicting the peril the Sundarbans is facing today due to climate change and human interference.

Handmade Photobook. Living With the Tides — The Sundarbans. Published by Night Rain Press.
How do you approach your subjects, whether human or non-human? Do you prefer to keep a distance from what you photograph?

Irrespective of the subject, human or non-human, the goal is always to engage with the fundamental wholeness of nature, the way that things are linked together and the story it tells. The proximity and engagement are dictated by whether I am an element of the story or not. Say I intend to capture the curious eyes of a child watching a visitor then I would be in proximity, engaged in the story. If I am capturing the carefree freedom of their play, then my physical presence must remain as obscure as possible from the scene. But I believe irrespective of the physical distance, one cannot truly capture the essence of the story without feeling the oneness. That is when we can see what lies in-between, how the elements are weaved together. That is when we capture the continuity of time and space across the frame of the capture. It’s no longer a frame frozen in time but an eternal story. So, I guess I might be physically close or far from the subject, but when I am successful in my photography I am never spiritually separated.

How does distancing oneself from the community being photographed impact the storytelling of the work? Have you run into any ethical concerns while working on this project?

Proximity and involvement always have profound impact on the story telling. Whether it is human, non-human, animate or inanimate, one’s presence would always alter the abstract energy of the story. Then the question always remains what the intent of the story is, what level of alteration tells the essence of the story that one intent to tell. It can be being fully engaged to complete obscurity. The goal is to see and feel the story. When successfully done, one will always find themselves in the optimal proximity.

Ethical concerns and dilemma are always part of any journey. No matter how faint, we never walk a path that we don’t leave our footprints upon. I always find myself in the ethical dilemma whether my presence would alter the fundamental spirit of the ecosystem. I consider that to be a valuable tool in my disposal. That is what enables me to be respectful and appreciative. It guides me to navigate the lands and feelings with gentleness. I would always leave behind something and I will always take back something; and I strive to tread such that our spirits are enriched on both sides. Sometimes I succeed and sometimes I fail.

While working on this project I did not face any ethical issue as per say, but as I mentioned the dilemma is always there. But the way I explored had been gentle, respectful and nonintrusive.


Your work reminds us of Benjamin Dimmit’s Elegy for Wetlands. Considering the realities of climate change and human impact on the Sundarbans, do you consider the project to be an elegy to a disappearing ecosystem?

I have not gone through Benjamin Dimwit’s work; will check up. I do consider this project as an elegy to a disappearing ecosystem. A staggering diversity of life forms in the Sundarbans find themselves in the verge of extinction between deforestation originating from the north and rising seas (due to global climate change) to the south. I am keenly aware that the Sundarbans has almost reached that ‘tipping point’ where further damage by humans could push the ecosystem into an ecological tailspin, from which the tiger and its co-inhabitants may never recover. The U.N. Food and Agriculture organization suggests that “mangroves today cover around 15 million hectares (ha.) worldwide, down from 18.8 million ha. in 1980.” Roughly, one million hectares of this globally threatened heritage exists as the Sundarbans (spread across both India and Bangladesh). The latest blow is the establishment of the Rampal coal power plant set up within 14km of the Sundarbans which poses serious threat to this unique ecosystem exposing the downriver forests to pollution and acid rain. 


How do you envision this project contributing to the ongoing efforts to conserve and restore the Sundarbans for future generations?

I don’t know how exactly my work would contribute to shaping the future of Sundarbans. It might ignite sparks in the brilliant minds of new generations to come and snowball into something great. Or it may just as well die down. I believe one never truly know the series of events that may follow one’s actions. I have been simply driven by the urge that it is for me to capture the fleeting beauty of Sundarbans, present it to the world as best as I can and follow the path it may carve out to continuously bring awareness of the consequences of our actions.

Can you describe some of the specific experiences, anecdotes, or moments in the Sundarbans that have left a lasting impression on you?

Too many. 

In the last human habitat near the Sundarbans, there is a village called ‘Khejuria’. We went to the village. Bonbibi Puja was next day, and the Priest was reciting the timeless stories of Bonbibi – the mangrove forest goddess – a diety revered by Hindus and Muslims alike. 

The complete silence in the morning. The dense fog covering everything around. Feeling of ‘now’ for that moment and nothing after.

The kingfisher guiding the boat, flashing its wings and the spotted deer quietly looking at us. 

All the magnificent moments!

I do not want any of these to be just memories from the past for the future.

To wrap things up could you tell us the stories behind these specific images?

We saw this boat (first image) during one of our morning rides inside one of the creeks. Just the boat and its reflection was telling the story of the boatman. 

The second image is near the Kotka beach. It was low tide. Suddenly a bunch of spotted deer passed running. The mangrove trees with exposed roots, the sand, the tide and the deer all made it whole.

About the artist

Laila Nahar is a lens-based artist and book-maker in California, USA. She lived her life in stark cultural contrast, born and brought up in Bangladesh and eventually migrated to US in her late 20’s for pursuing higher studies in Engineering. Laila retired from the high-tech industry after 24 years to devote full-time for the passion of her life as a photo and book artist.

Laila is primarily a self-taught photographer and book-artist exploring belonging, memory, cultural and collective identity. She took workshops with Eugene Richards, Frank Espada, Amy Arbus, Keith Carter, Nevada Wier and Emin Ozmen (Magnum), Aline Smithson. Lately, she has become increasingly fascinated with hand-made photo book making and attended workshops with Elizabeth Avedon, Void Impromptu (Publisher), Melanie McWhorter, Center of Book Arts in NYC, Yumi Goto and Susan Kae Grant.

Laila attended CODEX 2024 with 7 of her handmade Artist photobooks. ‘Will you come to Rome with me?‘ selected for DUMMY AWARD24 shortlist. ‘I Have Been Here Before’ photobook selected for ‘12th Annual Self-Published PhotoBook Show’ (‘22); shortlist in the Independent Category Lucie Photo Book Prize 2022 and, featured in PhotoBook Journal. ‘Unfolding: Color of Life – Old Delhi’ photobook selected for ‘13th Annual Self-Published PhotoBook Show’ at Griffin Museum of Photography (‘23) and selected as one of best photobooks in 2022 by Women/non-binary on TheLuupe.com. It was honorable mention in “Back on the Shelf” by FilterPhoto in exhibition (‘23). Photographs of these projects in several group exhibitions by PH21, F-Stop, PhotoPlace, SEC4P, thecuratedfridge, 18th Julia Margaret Award, Griffin Museum of Photography etc.

Laila’s handmade artist photobooks are in permanent collections of several libraries, including University of Colorado Boulder Libraries, Rhode Islands School of Design, University of Richmond (Virgina), Harvey Milk Photo Center (San Francisco) etc.

Interview by Vicente Isaías.

Member In Focus: Sandra Klein

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Today the spotlight is on our member Sandra Klein whose projects The Embittered Heart & Stitched Stories remind us of the tactile surface of photography. An interview delving into her mixed-media process, inspirations and challenges follows

Klein’s website: https://www.sandrakleinportfolio.com/
Klein’s Instagram: @sandra_klein_photography

© Sandra Klein, Serpent’s Sting

Sandra Klein is an artist whose images, whether captured with a camera or composited, portray a layered world which, though filled with anxiety and trauma, still is rich with joy. She was born in Elizabeth, New Jersey and received a BFA from Tyler School of Fine Art in Philadelphia, Pa and An MA in Printmaking from San Diego State University.  Her images have been shown throughout the United States and Abroad and she has had one person shows at the Griffin Museum of Photography, both the Lishiu and Yixian Festivals in China, Studio Channel Islands, the A Smith Gallery in Texas and Photographic Gallery SMA in San Miguel Allende, Mexico.

She was the recipient of the Lorser Feitelson Grant jointly with artist Betye Saar. 

Her work has been featured on Lenscratch, The Boston Globe, A Photo Editor, What Will You Remember, Musee Magazine, all About Photo Magazine, Dek Unu, Beta Magazine and Diffusion Magazines, and is held in public and private collections. 

She is represented by Photographic Gallery SMA in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico and Walker Fine Art Gallery in Denver, Colorado

© Sandra Klein, Leonardo Silver Nitrate

The Embittered Heart

The series, entitled The Embittered Heart, consists of visual poems that evoke the universal emotions of pain, loss and cynicism that often come with the experience of betrayal. Although my own such experience happened many years ago, the remnants of it have in some ways remained with me and changed me so that the memories feel vivid enough still to portray them honestly. 

I love the study of the layered image and the actual printing process in photography, probably because my background is in printmaking. Here I use the heart and cacti or succulents in general and roots and spines in particular to portray the various responses we human beings have when we end a relationship. As I have in the past, I am also using embroidery in some of the pieces to add three-dimensionality. I continue to find this study of love and loss mysterious and magical. 

© Sandra Klein, Hombre de Espinas from The Embittered Heart

Stitched Stories

Stitched Stories is a portfolio consisting of visual poems that evoke such universal emotions as loneliness, loss and aging. For the past two years I have created composited self-portraits that are combined with embroidered text, adding a three-dimensional element to the page. The text is gleaned from poems that have resonated with me and speak to issues that I am exploring.

In these portraits I use my body as the “canvas” or “paper.” Although I am a woman, I have always eschewed what I call women’s crafts.  There is something, though, about slowly and meticulously sewing these words onto the photograph that really personalizes and enlivens these pieces for me. I do not see the act of puncturing the image in any way as violent, but instead, I consider the embroidering a way to connect with the photograph and in a sense, with myself.

© Sandra Klein, Expect Nothing from Stitched Stories

What inspired your journey into photography?

Although I majored in Printmaking while getting my BFA at Tyler School of Art in Philadelphia, I had a truly inspirational photography teacher in my senior year.  He was a visiting professor named Irv Sherman and he believed that being a successful photographer was most importantly about learning to see and he focused on that rather than on technical issues .  We were each given a simple camera, an Olympus Pen Wide Angle camera that shot 72 grainy photo negatives to a roll.  We had only one type of photo paper.  What was important was content.  He also believed making art was meant to be joyful.  

In terms of my photography themes, I owe my debt to the year I spent with the artist Betye       Saar in her studio as part of a joint grant we received.  She was inspirational in many ways, but most importantly she inspired me to make personal art about my own experiences in life.

© Sandra Klein, I Worried

What prompted your interest in embroidering photographs?

 I majored in Printmaking in graduate school and taught at a junior college in San Diego for a while, but once I moved to Los Angeles, I didn’t have use of a press and started making collages and assemblages.  I began using my own photographs in the collages and started sewing collage pieces onto my images, rather than glueing them.  I loved the idea of using a woman’s craft in my imagery.  After I took a photoshop class, I began making layered photographs and using embroidery when appropriate. Embroidery is never used as a decorative addition, but rather to be part of the concept.  Also I love physically intervening with the photograph and adding a hand made element.  

© Sandra Klein, The Caress

Where did the idea of Embittered Heart come from and what message do you hope it conveys? How does the title reflect this?

I make art about my experiences as a way to understand humanity. Years ago I was left heartbroken after the breakup of my first marriage. I was in pain and bitter for a period of time, but eventually opened myself up to new healthier relationships. I moved on.  I’ve thought a lot about the impact this kind of traumatic experience has on people’s lives and wanted to portray those responses.  I spent time living in Mexico many years ago and have loved their cultural use of the Heart in their arts and crafts. The idea came to me to combine images of the heart with succulents and cacti from my garden to use as metaphors for the range of emotional responses to heartbreak and betrayal. 

© Sandra Klein, Graceful Opuntia

What have been the biggest challenges for you as an artist and how have you overcome them?

 My biggest challenge is doubting myself and fear of rejection. I constantly remind myself that artmaking is a journey, one’s own personal journey and that comparing oneself to others is foolhardy.  I also have the challenge of making photographs that are not traditional and accepting that my work will not be appreciated by many.  I think of myself as someone who uses a camera to make art and not coming from a photo background, but rather a fine art background, I am perhaps more open to breaking the “rules” which can be seen as a positive or negative.  

Tell us more about one or more of your selected photographs from this series.  

Comparing and contrasting two images works best for me. The image Gasteria Brownie is a succulent from my garden.  It’s is soft, fleshy and welcoming and I chose to use it as a metaphor for someone who remains open to new and loving relationships.  After photographing it I layered it growing out of a heart taken from a scan. There is also a bit of sewing on the heart. Mujer Sola, (woman alone), is an image with many many layers. She is surrounded by cacti with sharp thorns and and a spiky cactus has overtaken her heart and uterus.  She remains in pain and closed off from the future. 

© Sandra Klein, Gasteria Brownie
© Sandra Klein, Mujer Sola

What drives your continued passion for creating?

Making art is the place where I feel most comfortable.  It brings me joy and is  a place where I feel mindful.  I love searching for new ways to express myself and challenging myself.  I love the creative process.  I love photographing, but also love layering images in photoshop or by collaging.  I love storytelling.  Artmaking is part of my soul and I could never give it up.  


© Sandra Klein, Torn Soles

Vision(ary) | Adrienne Defendi: Canopy Constellations

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Following the devastating 2020 CZU Lightning Complex fires, artist Adrienne Defendi began photographing brush piles in Big Basin Redwoods State Park. For the artist, these post-fire accumulations featured in her project, Canopy Constellations, became symbolic of loss and renewal, representing the interconnectedness and the cyclical nature of ecosystems.

In this interview, Defendi speaks about her project’s emotional and spiritual connection to the land and how it deepens through her chosen medium of toned cyanotypes. The work is currently on view in our 2024 Vision(ary) exhibition.

© Adrienne Defendi. All imgaes courtesy the artist except noted.

Adrienne Defendi is an artist whose work explores the cyclical, the ephemeral, and the fragility of life. Her lifelong interests in memory and myth, narrative and nostalgia inform her photographic expression and artistic process. Employing different mediums, from analog to alternative processes and various printmaking techniques, her practice charts elements of loss and ritual, and the boundless possibilities within reiteration and experimentation. An award-winning artist, Adrienne has exhibited her work nationally and internationally, and is currently an artist-in-residence with the City of Palo Alto’s Cubberley Artist Studio Program.

Website: www.adriennedefendi.com
Instagram: @adrienne_defendi

© Adrienne Defendi.

How did the brush piles in Big Basin after the 2020 CZU lightning fires inspired your project?

Adrienne Defendi: A little background to the series: I had documented all kinds of accumulated matter in the aftermath of the CZU Lightning Complex fires in a neighborhood in Boulder Creek where debris was collected for removal. At this time, the piles were made of charred house debris (metal infrastructure, brick, cars, household appliances, and more domestic items,for example, a sewing machine, cutlery, and ceramics). I returned habitually to capture the clean-up effort; the housing lots were eventually cleared leaving solitary brick chimneys standing as sentinels of loss. By spring 2021, the chimneys, too, were gone, to prepare the land for sale and reconstruction.

© Adrienne Defendi.

Similarly, in Big Basin Redwoods State Park there was dedicated and extensive clean-up work, and piles of botanical debris amassed everywhere in and around the park, I continued to document mounds, from the delicate piles of swept twigs and leaves along the Redwood Loop path to impressive piles of cut trunks and branches stacked for their eventual prescribed burn. I hiked the trail along the Opal Creek that had over a hundred piles, each with their own unique architectural beauty, and returned monthly to document them until their prescribed burn. The brush piles, their intricate assemblage, and the deep appreciation for those who created them, are the inspiration for this series.

You talk about brush piles as symbolic of loss, remembrance, and transformation. Can you expand a little more on the power they carry?

AD: Brush piles are a standard practice for general forest upkeep, yet their increased presence in light of the destructive fires struck a deep chord within me. The piles reminded me of burial mounds, marking loss and remembrance, and transformation: fallen and burnt botanical matter was gathered in brush piles to be burned in fire prevention management, and each one signified, for me, a memorial mark of ritual and mourning. For more context, during this same period in my studio I was making my own “Memorial Mounds,” stacks of collagraph prints imprinted with human hair and burn-scar charcoal pigment, asking myself: What is forever lost? Is loss lost forever? Is loss only derivative? When stacked, the prints convey a ceremonial presence, a book of leaves, archived memories, a quiet memorial; when unstacked, they are transformed and create another kind of visual narrative, rhythmic and varied. I viewed the brush piles in Big Basin through a similar lens and appreciated their ephemeral and cyclical characteristics. Since the public reopening of Big Basin in June 2023, I continued to document the accumulated brush piles to commemorate all the labor and care by staff and volunteers who restored the park and conducted prescribed burns of the piles.

© Adrienne Defendi.

We love the questions you asked yourself and how they reflect visually throughout your work. We’d like to ask, how has your relationship to the land evolved emotionally and/or spiritually? And how has the idea of “land” changed after working on this project?

AD: For some time, I have felt a deep affinity to the natural world, to death and dying, to cyclical renewal and possibility. Working on this series focused my art process and intentions, and opened new dialogues for me in regards to environmental issues and the dedicated efforts involved in conservation. In my work, I am drawn to beauty found through serendipity and experimentation, and what is new in this series is how I intentionally curated and privileged the idea of reciprocal care and collaboration in restoring the environment. I returned to the same locations over an extended period of time which allowed for a deeper examination of renewal and transformation.

Your technique is fascinating. Could you explain the significance of the cyanotype printing process in relation to the themes present in your project?

The cyanotype, an early photographic process first used for scientific documentation as early as 1842 (for example, Anna Atkins’ foundational work of botanicals and algae), recalls the photographic history of scientific exploration and archived knowledge. I love the cyanotype’s tactile process and how it allows me to explore imagery with large digital negatives, toning solutions, burn-scar ash, and multiple exposures. Canopy Constellations highlights a cyclical and inherent relationship among the earth, the sky, the forests, and the atmosphere, and implicitly ourselves. As I continued to document the brush piles and their prescribed burn, I felt that sunlight exposures offered me close collaboration with the elements, while also allowing for ongoing experimentation. 

Let’s dive in further. Can you guide us through the process of toning the cyanotype prints in a redwood solution? 

AD: Collecting redwood bark from the proximity of the Big Basin Redwoods State Park and my own backyard, I place pieces of torn bark in a large pot with tap water, bring it to a boil, and then simmer the solution for about an hour or so until the water is an opaque brown red. Straining out the bark debris, I prepare a toning bath in a large tray where I place wet cyanotype prints, soaking from 5-30 minutes, agitating approximately every 5 minutes. Each batch of toning solution presents its own particular hue and reacts uniquely to each print. I often recoat, re-expose, and retone prints in an explorative and intuitive manner, and enjoy each print’s unique evolution. 
 
What inspired the decision to print the cyanotype images in the round and how does this choice enhance the representation of your artistic concept? 

AD: Both the print in the round and the grid pattern are directly inspired by a spherical crown densiometer, a forester’s tool that I fell in love with on a scientific nature walk while on the Art About Artist Residency in June 2023. I held the square wooden jewel-like box open in the palm of my hand with arm outstretched under a tree canopy, which is reflected in a round mirror etched with twenty-four squares. The grid of twenty-four and a series of calculations help assess the density of a forest overstory or canopy. The circular reflection intrigued me, especially how I looked down at the tool’s mirror to decipher what was above; the imagery in the series animates this dynamic framework.

By giving the series specific parameters – the image in the round within a square print – I reference the scientific tool and explore imagery from the sky to the ground in both a representational way (for example, a straight documentation of a brush pile) as well as the imagined (the overlaying of multiple images and exposures) suggesting movement, change, and transformation. The use of the circle evokes our own earth, our observational eye, and recalls the scientific lens of a microscope, monocle, or even binoculars (as in the case of the Mother Tree print with two circles that overlap like a Venn diagram). I am fascinated by the positive and negative imagery in the series which intimates the relationship between presence and absence, destruction and creation, and suggests a world in constant transformation.

© Adrienne Defendi.

The grid is directly inspired by the twenty-four square pattern etched on the mirror of the spherical crown to invite inquiry and to offer a novel way of reframing what we see. The grid pattern speaks to the idea of taking measure of what is above and below, and highlights themes of interconnectivity and cyclical transformation, just as the grid imagery depicts a forest life cycle (from forest, to burnt ash, to regrowth). And pushing this notion further, the work implicitly invites us to examine our coexistence with our own forests, communities, and natural surroundings. 

© Adrienne Defendi.


How do you hope viewers will interpret and connect with the series, considering the environmental themes embedded in your project and the current state of the world?

I hope viewers connect with the beauty and wonder of Big Basin’s revival and of any scorched or damaged land dear to the viewer. I hope viewers consider their own agency in the cycle of life, personally and locally, in their own “backyards” in terms of conservation and preservation (and even one’s own mortality and legacy). Many of the brush piles I captured were built by volunteers dedicated to Big Basin’s preservation, and so many working hands are vital for intentional and visionary sustainability.

© Adrienne Defendi.

In what ways do you see your work contributing to larger dialogues on conservation, sustainability, and preservation, especially in the face of natural disasters?

Perhaps in a very small way the series offers solace, testimony, and hope for recovery. The series Canopy Constellations embraces cycles of transformation and commemorates those dedicated to restoring Big Basin represented in the beautiful brush piles. It celebrates the perseverance and adaptability of the environment/forest itself as conveyed in the ancient coastal redwood, endearingly named “The Mother Tree” or “The Mother of the Forest” (an image featured in the series) that has survived many forest fires, most recently in 2020. It takes labor to chart loss. And it takes labor to move through loss to find resolve and working solutions in our ever-transforming worlds. 

© Adrienne Defendi.
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