curatorial
Seeing Here Now
Exhibition Catalogue
View Exhibition
April 25, 2011 – May 25, 2011
Opening Reception, April 25th 6pm – 8pm
NYU Kimmel Center
60 Washington Square South
New York, NY 10012
NYU Military Alliance is pleased to announce its inaugural photography exhibition, Seeing Here Now, showcasing the work of ten NYU Students in the Military and curated by Erica Leone. Participating artists include: Sara Banda, Mary Briatico, Michael Day, James Dreiling, Alex Gould, Will McElwaine, Juana Luster, AJ Pichardo, Kristina Shevory and Tim Thompson. The photographic styles and subjects uniquely reflect the vision of military personnel considering the home front after returning from war, and vary wildly—from classic landscapes to personal narratives; from street photography to abstraction.
The artists are all participants in Introduction to Photography & Video: A Creative Outlet for Veterans—a collaborative, creative forum for the NYU military community created and taught by visual artist Erica Leone. The weekly non-partisan workshops offer technical as well as aesthetic instruction. Dynamic in-class discussions compliment visual assignments and collaborative works.
In addition to the work of the individual artists, collaborative exercises with the NYU Veteran Creative Writing program will also be exhibited. Students from the two programs partnered on several ‘call and response’ projects whereby photographs serve as writing prompts. In return, the resulting poetry and narrative prose pieces act as photographic prompts—thus closing the collaborative loop. The results are visually stunning and emotionally evocative works of art.
NYU Veteran Photography is a yearlong program that encourages active, reserve, and retired military personnel to visually express themselves through photography and video. Participants are taught advanced image-making practices using accessible photographic devices (such as cell phones or point-and-shoot cameras) or donated professional equipment. Established artists, including filmmakers, fine-art photographers and writers, also visit the workshops, presenting their work and participating in student critiques.
Erica Leone is the founder and instructor of Introduction to Photography & Video: A Creative Outlet for Veterans. Leone is a New York-based visual artist, educator and MFA candidate at the Milton Avery School of the Arts, Bard College.
This programming would not have been possible without the collaboration of the NYU Student Resource Center, the Office for University Development & Alumni Relations and NYU’s Opportunity Programs, as well as the generous support of individual and corporate equipment donors.
Jan nou wè I / The Way We See It: A Collection of Haitian Women’s Photography
April 28th, 2011 from 7-9pm
Splash Light Studios
One Hudson Square
75 Varick Street, 3rd Floor
New York, NY 10013
For one night only, New York will be able to view Haiti through an as-of-yet unseen perspective: the eyes of Haitian women living in Haiti today.
Jan nou wè l/The Way We See It is a powerful collection of 48 original photographs taken by more than 40 Haitian women who have been victims of gender-based violence. The photographs capture their post-earthquake reality: tarpaulin shelters, makeshift bathrooms and kitchens. In short, a world with few doors to lock in which no one has private space. These women spent the last year using donated digital cameras to document their experience. This event will be the first—and possibly only—public viewing of this collection of images.
“Photography has given us a new outlet and determination to participate in the reconstruction of Haiti and ensure that women continue to find justice and support when they are victims,” said Malya Villard Appolon, one of the photographers and Co-Founder of Women Victims for Victims (KOFAVIV), who will speak about her and her colleagues’ experiences and photos at the NY event. “Photography is an important humanitarian tool,” said Villard Appolon, “because it allows us to capture concretely what has happened and what continues to happen in a country or community.”
The project began in April 2010 when US-based technology and human rights NGO Digital Democracy (Dd) traveled to Haiti with digital cameras to lead photo-training sessions. Up to that point, without cameras or knowledge of how to use them, these grassroots groups had paid others to document their experiences and raise awareness for their cause. At first only thirteen women, representing six grassroots groups, participated in the sessions. Yet with just two days of training and only four shared digital cameras between them, the women set out to tell their story. The results were strong, passionate, and extremely insightful.
“The fact that the women were ‘of’ the community allowed them to capture realities in the camps that no foreign photojournalist would have been able to capture,” said Abby Goldberg, one of the photography trainers and Haiti Outreach & Advocacy Manager for Dd. “In an environment such as the one these women live in the element of trust cannot be overstated. In that sense the photos are uniquely authentic and honest, not to mention beautiful and heart-wrenching.”
In collaboration with the women, collection curators, Erica Leone and Erin Kornfeld selected 48 photographs for exhibition. The photographs, as well as a catalogue of the work—translated in both Creole and English—will be available for purchase at the event and afterward online. There will also be a silent auction at the exhibition. All proceeds will support continuation of the work of the grassroots women’s groups and Dd in Haiti.