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Photographer Turned Filmmaker Finds His Niche In the Borough He Calls Home

Posted by Jt'Street Photography on 30/03/2012
Posted in: news. Tagged: , , , , , , , .

It seems only natural for artistic minded individuals to dabble in other forms of visual creativity as a means of furthering personal expression and exploration. Some of the greatest artists in history are multi-talented, many of whom developed phenomenal works through numerous mediums. With the existence and evolution of modern digital visual making, specific to stills and motion, and the desire for one artist to his expand craft, Brooklyn-based photographer David Cohen can now add another creative trade to his resume – filmmaking.

In an unintended effort that pays homage to the culturally diverse and eclectic area he has been living in for the past seven years, Cohen has developed a web-series entitled Made in Brooklyn. The series of episodes feature video profile shorts of local individual artisans who contribute to the notion of old New York City. Cohen has toyed with idea of producing the videos for quite some time. He says, “I’ve wanted to make these kinds of profiles for a long time. And I think it’s kinda the future of what I do.”

The Brooklynite, originally a commercial photographer and portraitist, just posted his newest episode on his Vimeo channel yesterday, March 26th. The second installment of the series, entitled The Watchmaker, features David Sokosh. Cohen follows Sokosh, a photographer turned watchmaker, in what appears to be his home/studio. Filmed in a beautifully cinematic documentary style, which can be viewed below, that elaborates on the intricacies of Sokosh’s craft, Cohen’s inclusion of hyper detail shots “allow people to appreciate the skill involved in what the subjects are doing” he says.

The first installment of Made in Brooklyn, dubbed The Violin Maker, which can also be viewed below, revolved around Sam Zygumtowicz. The video was so openly embraced that it received over 160,000 views and was picked up by numerous blogs and news outlets. Cohen’s work has only attracted more attention since then.

Cohen works closely with editor Michael Hurley to shoot and edit the pieces as quickly as possible. According to the now filmmaker, his pieces are the results to “careful planning and fly-on-the-wall” documentary style shooting. His interviews and shots are done within an afternoon, but Cohen makes it a top priority to develop a relationship with the artisan and understand the environments in which they work, which to any filmmaker is of extreme importance.

Concerning the individuals he has chosen from his web series, which he found from blogs like Forgotten New York and Jeremiah’s Vanishing New York, Cohen explains “I feel like there’s a resurgence of interests in things made in America and even more so with New York. There’s just that intimate connection I think people enjoy.”

In the near future, Cohen will feature other artisans, like that of a female metal smith jewelry maker, which will hit the web within the next two weeks, a shoemaker, a bespoke atelier, and a perfumer.

Tune in to Cohen’s web-series via his Vimeo page or shoot him a line on Twitter to show some support.

Via The Brooklyn Ink

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Inspirational Story of a Woman Born Blind From Albinism, But Pursuing Her Dream of Photography Nevertheless

Posted by Jt'Street Photography on 27/03/2012
Posted in: news. Tagged: , , , , .

The stories of disabled individuals whose determination and willingness to defy their odds are constantly rousing and inspirational, especially in the field of visual arts, where all of our fellow visual creatives are reliant upon the use of their eyes. All aspects of our creative fields, down to filmmaking and photography, calls for, as the genre’s term implies, “vision,” suggesting that artists and their works must be perceptible to and by the sense of sight.

Amy Hildebrand, a successful photographer based out of Cincinnati, Ohio, was born with albinism, which impacted her sense of sight so convincingly that doctors told her parents she was legally blind, and therefore, will never be able to do anything a normal child could do. Little did doctors know, however, it would only be a matter of years until the feisty girl would defy all of the predictions set forth by her doctors.

Albinism is a rare hereditary disorder that thwarts an individual’s body from producing melanin, the basic substance that is responsible for coloring the iris, hair, and skin. Melanin is forcefully developed and generated while an infant is growing in the mother’s womb. When the pigment-ridden enzyme does not produce properly, its impact can be detrimental and can impair the infant’s entire visual system completely, sometimes resulting in legal blindness as it did in Hildebrand’s case.

When Hildebrand was just five months old, she was using contact lenses for the specific purpose of easing her sensitivity to light. Three months later, she was seeing shadows and reaching for them as a result. This was so astonishing to doctors that the young girl was written about in medical journals. As time progressed, the soon-to-be artist’s sight was steadily improving and she was able to read with bold black and white lettering. Hildebrand said,

The world at that time was very fuzzy, but with lots of color,” she said. “I could see the shape of the couch, but not the pattern of the fabric.

When she was a teenager, however, the way Hildebrand viewed the world changed somewhat dramatically. She underwent tentative treatment that resulted in her gaining some of her eyesight back. At school, the vision-blooming  young girl was introduced to one of her greatest passions – photography. Concerning the art form, Hildebrand said, “It felt natural to me. I started using the camera as my eye. I could show people exactly what I was seeing.”

She actively pursued photography and continued with it in college, where she ended up meeting her husband, Aaron, in a darkroom.  The two are currently running their own successful photography business together.

Hildebrand said,

I am a person with albinism. But I am also a person who does photographs and a mother and an artist. My albinism is only just one aspect of me. It doesn’t define me.

Hildebrand grew up with extremely supportive parents, who also gave life to four other children born with albinism. The artist’s mom, Teri Garza Shields, made it a point to relentlessly urge her children to expand upon their disabilities. She always told her children that their only handicap is the limit that they put on themselves. She always ensured them that they could accomplish great things if they were to put their mind to it. Shields’s advice is sound for any individual, regardless if they have a disability or not.

Hildebrand’s struggle with her sight, from her early years to now, never stopped her from pursuing her artistic passion. If anything, the issues she experienced with her vision have shaped the kind of photographer she has become. There is an adamant appreciation and love for all that she sees, even if it isn’t the same way a person with 20/20 vision would see it. The energetic and go-getting photographer, who can do anything she sets her mind to, presently does a wide range of commercial photography, but also dabbles in event photography such as weddings.

Hildebrand’s story is truly inspiring. Be sure to check out her work, which can be viewed on her blog, entitled With Little Sound, HERE.

Via ABC News

A Loving Story of the Loving Family: Revisiting a Victory for Civil Rights Captured by Photographer Grey Villet

Posted by Jt'Street Photography on 15/02/2012
Posted in: news. Tagged: , , , , , , .

Richard and Mildred Loving with their children Peggy, Donald, and Sidney – Grey Villet

In the spirit of Valentine’s Day comes the smile-inducing and awe-provoking story of the Lovings, a family that may seem fairly “usual” by today’s standards, but at the time when LIFE photographer Grey Villet snapped his now famed images of the family, it was anything but…

Before we get into the story that would eventually become a pivotal case in the course of American history and politics, it is important to understand an old and unconstitutional concept that many of our American brothers and sisters had to follow. At the height of the Civil Rights Movement, there existed miscegenation laws, which enforced racial segregation and forbid marriage and intimate relationships between men and women of different races. Thus, marriage and intimate relationships were criminalized and offenders had to pay a hefty price – jail time.

You may be wondering what this has to do with photography… well keep reading. When we take a glimpse at LIFE photographer Grey Villet’s photographs of the Loving Family, we are given the opportunity to enter the world of Richard Perry Loving and Mildred Jeter Loving. Richard and Mildred were deeply in love, and it is evident in the timeless moments Villet captured them in.

Richard, an American Caucasian man, and Mildred, a mixed African and Native American, married in 1958 in Washington D.C. The law did not stop them from doing what they wanted to do; their love was enough to overpower it.  At the time the Lovings were married, interracial marriage was forbidden in twenty-four states, including their home state of Virginia.

After exchanging their vows, the Lovings were charged and convicted of miscegenation. Instead of spending a year doing time, the couple was exiled from Virginia for twenty-five years.  They decided to go back to Washington D.C., where they joined the American Civil Liberties Union. The Lovings filed a lawsuit on the grounds that the miscegenation laws are unconstitutional, and therefore an infringement of their rights as American citizens. The case, which rose to the Supreme Court, quickly turned into the groundbreaking case, Loving v. Virginia, which ended up declaring interracial marriages as legitimate.

Richard Loving kissing wife Mildred as he arrives home from work, King and Queen County, Virginia, April 1965 – Grey Villet

When the decision was made, the Lovings were granted amnesty and returned to their home in Virginia. The photographs, which Villet captured after the case was reached in 1965, depict the Loving family in candid, but natural, scenes in which their love is nothing short of evident. The Lovings have proven that nothing can come between two lovers, which makes Villet’s images worth more than a thousand words.

Villet’s photographs of the Lovings are currently on view at the International Center of Photographyin New York City through May 8th.

More images from the series can be found HERE.

Image Credit: Grey Villet | Via Americanphotomag

From Oppression to Appreciation: The Silent Strength of Chinese Dissident Liu Xia’s Photography

Posted by Jt'Street Photography on 13/02/2012
Posted in: news. Tagged: , , , , , , , .

“A woman looks at Liu Xia’s photos at the exhibit in Boulogne” Via The Wall Street Journal

While the photography of renowned Chinese artist and poet, Liu Xia, has been openly embraced by Europe and North America, in her native China, the practice of her art form is widely considered unacceptable.

No stranger to the oppression of expression, Liu Xiaobo, Liu Xia’s husband and the 2010 Nobel Peace Prize winner, was jailed 2009 for eleven years due to his advocacy for democratic reform in China. Shortly after Xiaobo was recognized for the prestigious award, Liu Xia was put under house arrest herself by the Chinese government in an effort to stifle celebration.

Guy Sorman, a curator and dear friend of the couple who visited Liu in September of 2010, came across Liu Xia’s photographs while in her apartment in Beijing. The black and white prints measured 3 feet by 3 feet and were taken by an undisclosed analog camera with very limited technical resources for the development of the negatives.

The photographs are of “ugly babies,” as Liu Xia refers to the dolls, which are made to portray the societally oppressed Chinese people. The positioning of their bodies and the expressions that plague their face are meant to echo their pain and suffering, visible in the eerily poignant images below:

 

Sorman had to convince Liu Xia to exhibit the photographs and, at first, she denied due to her belief of the photographs’ insignificance. She eventually gave Sorman permission to exhibit the works, under the stipulation that she does not know where and when the photographs are being exhibited.

Sorman was able to bring Liu Xia’s twenty-five photographs out of the country, individually, and stated that “convincing Liu Xia was more difficult than getting the images out of the strictly policed country.”  In addition, Sorman states that, “it took me several months to persuade a number of people. Each one carried one photo. If we had taken them out together it would probably have been difficult. The whole thing took a year.”

The photographs, which are now being exhibited at Columbia University in New York City until March 1st, depict an aspect of Chinese society that some of us, as outsiders, do not experience. We are familiar with the country’s technological and economical advances, but Liu Xia’s photographs show the artistic suffocation that visual creatives undergo on the daily.

Image Credit: Liu Xia | Via The Wall Street Journal

 

Via : The digital Visual