The Substack photography community this year has been growing and showing such a high degree of interest and engagement. This community is welcoming and diverse - thanks to so many of you who signed up for Wobneb recently, and everyone who is finding the Notes feature a respite from the big social media platforms. I enjoy the ongoing dialog related to others’ notes and posts, and related topics of interest. Folks are recommending others, and name dropping in the best way. Hooray for writers and photographers!
I'm incredibly honored that my editor, Christy Karpinski, invited me to guest edit this Spring’s 'Street Photography' issue #118 of F-Stop Magazine. I've assisted with a number of issues in the past, written dozens of interviews and pieces for the featured photographers - but this is the first time I took on thousands of images, and got to work armed with a set of criteria to pare down thousands of entries to less than 200 final selections, interview the featured photographer, and write the exhibition essay.
I'm thankful and so pleased to get such positive feedback from photographers who are in the exhibition, and other folks' kind words of support. This type of contribution to the 'larger discussion', if you will, is why I started my own publication, started writing seriously about photography over 7 years ago, and have not stopped thinking about photography for the past 36 years. Please check out the issue before the end of May!
For new readers - I like to mention notable articles, essays, interviews on a regular basis. This time is no exception.
I’ve just discovered recent work from a photographer I’ve enjoyed for years, Kathy Shorr. Kathy is a photographer whose work is a blend of documentary, portraiture and street photography - and her projects are as engaging and interesting as the people she features. I was honored to write a review for her 2017 book ‘SHOT: 101 Survivors of Gun Violence in America’ after it was published.
First and foremost, the project depicts the determination of the human spirit. Shorr features portraits and the stories of people directly impacted by gun violence. These survivors might just be the most effective campaigners against an unequal society, against blind gun advocacy, against assumptions about how and why guns exist within, and are discharged on, our streets. The least the rest of us can do is listen.
Her latest project is a continuation of the theme. ‘SHOT: We the Mothers’ features mothers who have lost children to gun violence. The project has represented the city of Philadelphia and she is currently working in Miami.
In the seven years since ‘SHOT: 101 Survivors…’ came out, there have been countless more mass shootings, countless more innocent lives lost to gun violence, and a meteoric rise in sales and ownership of guns designed for battlefields, not playgrounds or shopping centers. Children and adults in the United States face a nation where the rights of guns seem to get more legal protection than the victims of shootings. Any reasonable person would wonder if the cycle of violence will ever stop without intervention from our elected lawmakers. I cannot imagine the feelings of heartache and loss by the mothers featured in Shorr’s new body of work. Much like the people in Kathy’s first ‘SHOT’ book, these individuals have been deeply hurt and likely never want to revisit the pain of their experiences. But by having the courage to do so, and presenting themselves to Shorr’s camera, they may have uncovered a new possibility for them … and for all of us.
It is my hope that the wonderful, supportive photographic community here will take the opportunity to see Kathy’s work, see the work in person if possible, support her projects - and hopefully help shine a brighter light on the issue of gun violence. Maybe together we can all bring about effective change for the better.