Documentary Matters: May 14, 2019

DOCUMENTARY MATTERS

Tuesday, May 14, 2019

6:30 - 9:00 pm
Digital Silver Imaging
9 Brighton Street, Belmont, MA
Free!

Presented by Social Documentary Network and Digital Silver Imaging

Featured presenters:

Allison Dinner
Steven Edson
Cindy Weisbart 

Click here to sign up to attend.     

 

Allison Dinner

Photo by Allison Dinner

FOB Dahlke

FOB (Forward Operating Base) Dahlke is a new austere US Army base in Afghanistan with a large presence of soldiers from the 101st Combat Aviation Brigade. Every type of air support mission is done from here—from medevac, to resupply, to combat. Dahlke was built from the ground up over the past year by the soldiers stationed here. It is built on the south end of the now-abandoned Shank Base. Almost $6 million alone has been spent on miles of Hesco barriers,—wire frames that are filled with sand and serve as walls. Additionally, trucks hauled in more than 700 sections of blast wall. At the entrance to the cafeteria reads a sign: if you want to eat, you’ll have to fill two sandbags. There are no fancy amenities at Dahlke. With constant incoming fire from the Taliban, Dahlke is a blackout base. Which means at night there are no external lights, and helicopters take off dark (with no lights). Soldiers have nicknamed Dahlke Rocket City.

Artist Bio

Allison Dinner, a graduate of Rochester Institute of Technology, has won numerous awards for her outstanding photography. These include ASMP photographer of the year, Fotoweek DC silver award, Photography Masters Cup award, and many others. Whether a product in the studio, or an in-depth story in Cuba, her unique visionary perspective shines through. Allison’s passion for going below the surface has led her to photograph stories across the globe. Her passion lies in bringing life to what we all miss in the everyday through photography. Some of her clients include Consumer Reports, Food Arts, Food & Wine magazine, Niche Media, Ritz Carlton Hotels, The Washington Post, Delta Sky, Mikasa, and many others. She is an active contributor to Zuma Press.

 

Steven Edson

Photo by Steven Edson

The Country Fair

Street photography has always been a favorite medium of mine for documenting and exploring life around me. I have found that the camera enables me to create a portrait or document an activity that speaks about the inherent relationships of people to their environments.

County and state fairs are a magnet for thousands of people who come to enjoy and take break from their regular work schedules to spend time with their families, friends and neighbors. In the mid 1800s, the primary purpose of state and county fairs was to promote the exchange of innovative agricultural technology and farming processes to farmers who were looking to improve their crops and livestock. In the mid-1900s, as the United States became an industrialized and modern country, the fairs expanded to include rides, food, games, horse racing, demo derbys, and musical concerts among other forms of entertainment. The small family farm still remains an important part of today’s fairs with colored ribbons and trophies going to the winners of various crops and farm animals.

Artist Bio

I have been shooting still photographs for over 40 years. As a documentary photographer, my images have appeared in newspapers, magazines, annual reports and various forms of electronic media. I am passionate about using photography to document people, places and objects with the ability to capture the world in such incredible detail and to make photographs that have the capacity to impact people and help them to see the world in new ways.


Cindy Weisbart

Photo by Cindy Weisbart

The Power of Mentoring

I teach history in an urban public high school with Nkrumah Jones. Outside of school, Nkrumah is the nationally recognized coach of the nationally ranked NJCAA (Junior College) Division III men’s basketball team at Bunker Hill Community College in Boston, Mass. Jones mentors young men on the basketball court into a family of loyal brothers who are safe, comfortable, and absolutely focused on their coach. When I finally came to see one of his practices, I was riveted. Bearing witness to the humor, outrageousness, passion, political awareness, personalization and maturity of this team’s development brought me back again and again to photograph the emotions and expression of the power of mentoring on the Bunker Hill Community College basketball court.

Artist Bio

My work in social documentary photography is inspired by the collaborative development within the Bronx Documentary Center, the Kamoinge Collective and The Photo League. I am a loyal student of Stella Johnson, and have studied at the New England School of Photography, the Atelier at the Griffin Museum of Photography, Maine Media Workshops & College, and the Social Documentary Network. I am a public high school history teacher. Photography is one way I support the development of independent vision and inquiry for young adults.

 

Documentary Matters 

Documentary Matters is an initiative of the Social Documentary Network and Digital Silver Imaging to provide a place for photographers to meet with others involved with or interested in documentary photography and discuss ongoing or completed project. This is a free and open meeting for anyone interested in presenting, viewing, or discussing documentary photography.

You don't need to be a professional, expert, or established--you just need to be committed to the documentary form and committed to learning from feedback from others. And you don't need to be a photographer or presenting your work to attend. Everyone is invited to join us, look, listen, and comment. Still photography, multimedia, and video encouraged. Documentary required.   
 

Documentary Matters Registration

Click here to sign up to attend.     
 
 
 

Subscribe to ZEKE magazine

ZEKE magazine, Roma & Traveller Issue

Click here for more information on ZEKE magazine and to subscribe.