Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 2000/09/01
[Author Prev] [Author Next] [Thread Prev] [Thread Next] [Author Index] [Topic Index] [Home] [Search]ARTHURWG@aol.com wrote: > > Like George, I'm a true believer in "concerned photograpy." At its best it is > deeply humanizing. My complaint with regard to Nachtwey is that his > particular brand of photo is just the opposite-- profoundly dehumanizing.<<<<<<<<<<<<< SNIP >>>>>>>>>I find Nachtwey's message to be, " This is how it is. Take a good, close look and admit that there's nothing you or anyone else can do about it." <<<<<<<<<<< Hi Arthur, But if that is the message you get from his work, isn't it possible Natchwey gives a truer message than other photographers? I mean, if the atrocities of the world with the coverage given each were to never happen again due to the incredible photography published, that would mean "photography has accomplished something." However, greed and power lust never ends in the human species and the atrocities continue, so in his way, Nachtwey's images do just what you say they convey, "This is how it is. Take a good, close look and admit that there's nothing you or anyone else can do about it." Is it not reasonable to think given wars continue, that after being witness to the Ethiopia's, Somalia's, Kosovo's, Central America and all the other places of political up heaval, that Nachtwey has a much truer feeling for the hopelessness of it all? Yep I've had a few gut clutching assignments where you wanted to take all the kids home, feed them, give them warmth and comfort. But in reality even if one did, the next week or year would be the same thing all over again and you could go into the files pull out the same images without leaving the warmth of your home. The message would be the same........... "Starving and death!" Nachtwey's message isn't so far from the truth every time he sticks a photo in the face of the world "how one human being treats another, so live with it!" And I would much rather that the horror message from all the photographers ended the human suffering, rather than me say, "I'm with Nachtwey on this message that you feel his work conveys." ted Victoria, Canada http://www.islandnet.com/~tedgrant