Fatemi giusto introdurre questa storia appena arrivata da S4C New York. Conoscete il nostro progetto S4C Next Generation e sapete che stiamo insegnando a diversi gruppi di bambini in giro per il mondo (da Roma a Barcellona, da New York al Costa Rica, etc.) non solo a fotografare ma a raccontare storie attraverso le loro fotografie.
L’obiettivo è quello di collegare tutti questi bambini che, tra un po’, si racconteranno attraverso i loro piccoli reportage.
Bene, oggi vi mostriamo qualcosa di quel che stanno facendo i nostri amici di S4C a New York (Yelena, Rodney, etc.). Bellissima la citazione del titolo del documentario di Milton Rogovin “The Rich have their own photographers“, i ricchi hanno i loro fotografi. Non vi sembra che si adatti perfettamente…perfettamente…a Shoot4Change?
Noi siamo i fotografi di tutti gli altri…
AA
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Written By: Rodney Angelo Ferrer (www.sidewalkprophecyfilms.com)
Photos By: Students from the S4C Next Generation Workshops, Yelena Futeran & Rodney Angelo Ferrer [click here to see a short gallery of their photos]
(click to see the photogallery)
(click to see the photogallery)
It was a hot and sweltering night on July 13th 1977 when all the lights went out in New York city. A city that was trapped in a quagmire of economic and social disarray was in for a long, historic night of vandalism, arson and looting. I remember being a child in Brooklyn during the blackout seeing neighbors work together to share the burden of the devastating aftermath. An image of resilience I’ve identified Brooklynites with till this day. No neighborhood was hit harder and more depleted than the Northern part of Brooklyn known as Bushwick. A neighborhood that was once considered the Brewery capital of the North East and an architectural gem with brownstones and limestone-brick townhouses, where the likes of Jackie Gleason, Mae West, Eddie Murphy and Rosie Perez were born. Home to a predominately latino population Bushwick is one of the most diverse communities in the country. A community that has seen its share of urban decay and its struggle with drug infested neighborhoods, abandoned buildings and community businesses that never recovered from the blackout of 77′. Talks of urban renewal have come and gone since the 1960′s but now it seems as if Bushwick is finally moving forward again with economic and housing development. Programs like Bushwick Initiative has catapulted growing interest in Bushwick’s culture and history that has led to a renaissance of artist, entrepreneurs and developers. Now on a hot and sweltering day in Bushwick 2011 we conducted a photo workshop with kids from the community as we were taken by their stories and hopes for a new flourishing neighborhood.
(click to see the photogallery)
(click to see the photogallery)
We returned to Bushwick in December with photographer Isaak J. Liptzin who also resides in Bushwick. Together we conducted another photo workshop titled “Identity”. Yelena Fueteran’s idea of the workshop was inspired by photographer Milton Rogovin’s documentary, “The Rich have their own photographers”. The workshop consisted of four teens. Jazleen Negron who is a freshman and plays center for the Dewitt Clinton varsity basketball team. She lives in the Hylan housing projects in Buswick and her favorite subject is math. At first she was a bit shy but had no qualms about showing us her post up moves on the street basketball court. She says she plays for hopes of a scholarship and maybe move on to play pro ball for the WNBA. Then there was Basheam Reid From Abraham Lincoln high school who plays running back on the varsity football team. He is also from the Hylan housing projects and claims his rapping is just as sharp as his moves on the football field. He has an interest in photography as a way to communicate his take on his neighborhood. Also Evan Rader who walked into the workshop ready to shoot with his state of the art camera. He says he loves science and street art and is a student at M.S. 582. His parents are artist from Tennessee and recently moved to Bushwick to pursue their artistic endeavors. Finally Joe Walderman, a student at Columbia prep high school that contacted Yelena Fueteran online to interview her and take photos for his school paper. He is an aspiring journalist from the upper westside of Manhattan who has never been to Brooklyn prior to the Identity workshop. He wanted to expand his horizons and Bushwick was just the place. And as of for me, my image of Brooklynites were once again reaffirmed.
Let me just introduce this. You know, by now, our S4C Next Generation Project worldwide. We are teaching kids (from Rome to Barcelona, from Costa Rica to NYC) not only how to take photographs but to tell stories with them… Our goal would be to link all these kids and have them communicate among them only by means of their own reportages on common topics.
So, here is a short story of what our S4C NYC friends (Yelena, Rodney, etc.) are currently doing.
I think Rodney’s quote of Milton Rogovin’s documentary ”The Rich have their own photographers” ,suits S4C perfectly.
We are everybody else photographers….
Antonio Amendola
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Written By: Rodney Angelo Ferrer (www.sidewalkprophecyfilms.com)
Photos By: Students from the S4C Next Generation Workshops, Yelena Futeran & Rodney Angelo Ferrer [click here to see a short gallery of their photos]
(click to see the photogallery)
(click to see the photogallery)
It was a hot and sweltering night on July 13th 1977 when all the lights went out in New York city. A city that was trapped in a quagmire of economic and social disarray was in for a long, historic night of vandalism, arson and looting. I remember being a child in Brooklyn during the blackout seeing neighbors work together to share the burden of the devastating aftermath. An image of resilience I’ve identified Brooklynites with till this day. No neighborhood was hit harder and more depleted than the Northern part of Brooklyn known as Bushwick. A neighborhood that was once considered the Brewery capital of the North East and an architectural gem with brownstones and limestone-brick townhouses, where the likes of Jackie Gleason, Mae West, Eddie Murphy and Rosie Perez were born. Home to a predominately latino population Bushwick is one of the most diverse communities in the country. A community that has seen its share of urban decay and its struggle with drug infested neighborhoods, abandoned buildings and community businesses that never recovered from the blackout of 77′. Talks of urban renewal have come and gone since the 1960′s but now it seems as if Bushwick is finally moving forward again with economic and housing development. Programs like Bushwick Initiative has catapulted growing interest in Bushwick’s culture and history that has led to a renaissance of artist, entrepreneurs and developers. Now on a hot and sweltering day in Bushwick 2011 we conducted a photo workshop with kids from the community as we were taken by their stories and hopes for a new flourishing neighborhood.
(click to see the photogallery)
(click to see the photogallery)
We returned to Bushwick in December with photographer Isaak J. Liptzin who also resides in Bushwick. Together we conducted another photo workshop titled “Identity”. Yelena Fueteran’s idea of the workshop was inspired by photographer Milton Rogovin’s documentary, “The Rich have their own photographers”. The workshop consisted of four teens. Jazleen Negron who is a freshman and plays center for the Dewitt Clinton varsity basketball team. She lives in the Hylan housing projects in Buswick and her favorite subject is math. At first she was a bit shy but had no qualms about showing us her post up moves on the street basketball court. She says she plays for hopes of a scholarship and maybe move on to play pro ball for the WNBA. Then there was Basheam Reid From Abraham Lincoln high school who plays running back on the varsity football team. He is also from the Hylan housing projects and claims his rapping is just as sharp as his moves on the football field. He has an interest in photography as a way to communicate his take on his neighborhood. Also Evan Rader who walked into the workshop ready to shoot with his state of the art camera. He says he loves science and street art and is a student at M.S. 582. His parents are artist from Tennessee and recently moved to Bushwick to pursue their artistic endeavors. Finally Joe Walderman, a student at Columbia prep high school that contacted Yelena Fueteran online to interview her and take photos for his school paper. He is an aspiring journalist from the upper westside of Manhattan who has never been to Brooklyn prior to the Identity workshop. He wanted to expand his horizons and Bushwick was just the place. And as of for me, my image of Brooklynites were once again reaffirmed.
