Impressions

The other day I drove my son to soccer practice with a couple of his teammates. I asked them what they were planning to be for Halloween. "It's gonna be huuuuuuuge!" said one of the boys; everyone laughed.  

How disappointing it must be for youth to see their leaders as a joke.

Now wait: I know that dressing up as a presidential nominee or President or any other world leader is nothing new, and making fun of them isn't new either. It's happened for eons, it's funny, we all laugh. But this isn't that.  These kids aren't making fun of these leaders tongue-in-cheek, they aren't even partially respecting them in their costumes; they are flat-out calling them a complete and utter joke.  

Writing about it now, I'm finding it difficult to explain the difference I see between comedy and the disrespect they have for the figures they hear so much about these days.  But I guess it doesn't matter. My point is this: if youth today are characterizing these 2016 leaders as a complete joke, what will these kids, as grown adults, think of the political landscape that is left in the wake of this election?  ~sw

The New American Dream

There's much talk about the middle, mostly about the middle class - defending this 'Middle' as being the best of America;  "The American Dream": the hard working rags-to-riches being represented by the current 'Middle Class'. This 'Middle' term has become commonplace in political discourse, talk about 'Main Street' America and all of that.  It paints a picture, that's for sure.  

I use 'Middle' for my project too, as a way to tie together the myriad of issues I am exploring, both geographically, politically, ideologically. We could talk for days about 'Middle' being a division, a goal, a marking point, so many ways to characterize America and Americans in/of/around 'Middle'.

But "The American Dream" isn't about becoming middle class - it's about becoming rich: a house with a white picket fence in a tree-lined neighborhood where your well-mannered child walks to school safely on their own to the well-resourced school and maybe having a career that allows you to go to work at 9 and has you home in time for dinner and enjoy family and life before the day is done.  This is the lifestyle of the rich, or is it? I don't know anyone with this lifestyle.

Does anyone believe in "The American Dream" anymore - for real? The story where anyone from a poor community with passion and desire is able to move through life with close to no resources and somehow take their passion and desire to be successful enough to join the top tiered income that can afford the so-called "American Dream".  It's funny that politicians still use this vision; the "American Dream" that most Americans have is not the same that it used to be.  

Demolition begins on the white picket fence, that's for sure, tree-lined neighborhood can be planted later. "The New American Dream" is closer to just being able to work a steady job that can allow a sense of every day comfort, safety, and choice.  Saving, vacation, health -  our collective vision is not about choosing these things, they are a given, something that don't have to be defended day-in and day-out.  This new dream is bigger, bolder, and broader than 'Middle'.  It's Universal, it's Humanitarian, it's Global. ~sw

Debating and Planning

Each day that passes brings confirmation that American political landscape photos this year can be some of the most interesting images in the history of American politics.  The debates as depicted in the media have shown fascinating insight into the crumbling of our collective ability to have intellectual discourse amongst the highest level leaders in the world.  Still, I wonder how much impact this election has on the American landscape as a whole, besides it's ability to divide the country into hatred and disgust.    

Planning for the photographic journey is in full swing, some camera and film research taking up a bit of attention; my previous film is no longer in production and so I have to some decisions about which technical avenues to pursue.  Earlier in the project in 2008, a prime decision I had to make was choosing between black and white vs. color film - I couldn't decide, and shot with both much to the chagrin of subsequent portfolio reviewers.  In 2012, color film was the key element of the images while black and white film was used to document the process.  

As far as the cameras I have used so far, the quality and history of film lends itself well to documenting these political landscapes.  I began the project with a Rolleiflex, a camera that was popular around the time of JFK who's legacy was compared to the intense youthful energy surrounding the Obama campaign in 2008 - the beginning of this project.  The 2012 election photos were shot with the same Rolleiflex camera and quite a bit more film.  Plans for the 2016 trip is on track to utilize the same Rolleiflex alongside a Hasselblad and perhaps a 4x5 press camera - we shall see what I can pull together by then.  ~sw