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NUEVA LUZ photographic journal M En Foco Celebrates 30 Years! TAHIR HEMPHILL Volume 10 No. 2 – U.S. $7.00 M 02> BONNIE PORTELANCE M M JUAN MIGUEL RAMOS Commentary by MARK SEALY M 0574470 92723 7INNEROFTHE.ATIONAL-AGAZINE!WARDFOR'ENERAL%XCELLENCE h !PERTURE 6ISITAPERTUREORGTO 35"3#2)"%NOWANDSAVE EXEMPLIlESMAGAZINE MAKINGATTHEHIGHESTLEVELv*UDGES#ITATION #OPYRIGHT©,ORETTA,UX #OURTESY9OSSI-ILO'ALLERY NUEVA LUZ Editorial photographic journal volume 10:2 I 've been giving some thought to time: time that sits on your wrist, time that arranges your waking hours, time that passes, evolving your mind and body. There was a time when civilizations depended upon the natural forces to measure time, the sun and the T a b lll e o f C o n t e n t s stars offered guidance and the earth itself would respond with cyclical changes. Time takes on different shapes depending on what we want to do with it and by the time you begin to see it for what it is, you’re out of it because you’re no longer of that time. Editorial page 1 Phil Dante's time ran out on December 11, 2004. He was one of the founders of En Foco and Tahir Hemphill page 2–9 a fine photographer. He apprenticed with W. Eugene Smith, one of the great photojournal- Bonnie Portelance page 10–17 ists who once stated that "intent is more important than content." In a New York Times article, Juan Miguel Ramos page 18–26 Dante criticized the Bruce Davidson exhibition and book, East 100th Street. He wrote "Integrity, in any respect, is a rare flower and, in a world growing more dependent upon the Contributors page 27 visual as a means of communicating, too many photographers find it expedient to ignore it Commentary by Mark Sealy page 28–29 for the sake of a strong image – for the sake of art. Are we then to allow art to have pre-emi- Intercambio: En Foco’s 30 Years page 30–35 nence over conscience? I believe we do so at great peril, for what does it profit art if even Critical Mass page 36–39 one child is hurt by a misrepresentation?"* Advertising page 40–46 In the last year of his life, Dante returned to El Barrio in New York City to form a photogra- phers’ forum, much as we had when we founded En Foco thirty-one years ago. Just as Ché continued the fight in Bolivia after the revolution triumphed, Dante brought the question of ethics and equity back to the new generation of image-makers searching for their center. NUEV A LUZ STAFF BOARD OF DIRECTORS Charles Biasiny-Rivera Then there's the regeneration of time: I recently became a first-time grandfather. His name is Publisher & Editor Angela Cabrera Charles Biasiny-Rivera Atutahi Maitreya John Charles Waiora Avishai Isaiah Te-Pua-Wananga-Ki-Te-Ao Rakuraku Frank Gimpaya Biasiny-Tule. His place in the universe is announced with the most sacred of Maori names Associate Editor Pedro Morales Betty Wilde-Biasiny and his home is in New Zealand. His Maori, Puerto Rican and Dutch heredity will serve him well. Managing Editor BOARD OF ADVISORS Miriam Romais Nadema Agard There’s comfort in the acceptance of a perpetual consciousness that offers the possibility that Millie Burns Advertising someday we just might get it right. Meanwhile, with the time remaining, we simply have to Marisol Díaz Ricky Flores Jeff Hoone put one foot in front of the other without destroying someone else's sandcastle, and if you Copy Editor Nitza Luna are messing with photography, it’s time to start thinking about who or what you’re pointing Heidi Leigh Johansen Sandra Pérez your camera at, and why. Translator Sophie Rivera Patricia Fernández Mel Rosenthal Cheryl Younger U ltimamente he estado pensando en el tiempo: el tiempo que llevamos en la EN FOCO STAFF DISTRIBUTORS muñeca, el tiempo que organiza las horas que pasamos despiertos, el tiempo que pasa Executive Director Ubiquity Distributors, Inc. mientras nuestras mentes y cuerpos van evolucionando. Hubo un tiempo en que las civi- Charles Biasiny-Rivera 718/789-3137 lizaciones dependían de las fuerzas naturales para poder medirlo, un tiempo en que el sol y Managing Director Bernhard DeBoer, Inc. las estrellas proporcionaban una guía y la Tierra respondía con cambios cíclicos. El tiempo Miriam Romais 973/667-9300 va adoptando diferentes formas según lo que queramos hacer con él y, cuando llega la hora Armadillo & Co. Program Director 800/499-7674 de verlo por lo que realmente es, ya es tarde porque hemos dejado de pertenecer a ese tiem- Marisol Díaz po. Webmaster PRINTING Daniel Schmeichler Eastwood Litho, Inc. El tiempo de Phil Dante se acabó el 11 de diciembre de 2004. Uno de los fundadores de En 315/437-2626 Foco y un magnífico fotógrafo, Dante comenzó su carrera como aprendiz de W. Eugene Design, Frank Gimpaya Smith, uno de los grandes periodistas gráficos, que en una ocasión declaró que “la intención es más importante que el contenido.” En un artículo del New York Times, Dante ofreció esta crítica de East 100th Street, el libro y la muestra de Bruce Davidson: "La integridad, en cualquier aspecto, es una flor muy poco común y, en un mundo cada vez más dependiente Copy r i g h t © 2005 by En Foco, Inc. (ISSN 0887-5855) de lo visual como modo de comunicación, a demasiados fotógrafos les parece oportuno All Rights Reserved • 718/584-7718 ignorarla a favor de una imagen impactante, a favor del arte. ¿Permitiremos, entonces, que 32 East Kingsbridge Road, Bronx, NY 10468 el arte tenga precedencia sobre la conciencia? En mi opinión, esa actitud acarrea un gran www.enfoco.org www.. enfoco.. org peligro, ya que ¿en qué se beneficia el arte si un solo niño se ve perjudicado por una repre- sentación tendenciosa?"* NATIONAL En el último año de su vida, Dante volvió a El Barrio en Nueva York para formar un forum ENDOWMENT FOR THE ARTS de fotógrafos, tal y como hicimos hace más de treinta años cuando fundamos En Foco. Al igual que el Ché continuó su lucha en Bolivia después de que triunfara la revolución, Dante Nueva Luz is the country’s premier photography magazine to pub- volvió a proponer la cuestión de la ética y la igualdad, esta vez a una nueva generación de lish works by American photographers of African, Asian, Latino, fotógrafos en busca de su foco. Native American and Pacific Islander heritage. Nueva Luz is made possible through the National Endowment for Luego también tenemos la regeneración del tiempo: recién me convertí en abuelo por the Arts, the Bronx Council on the Arts, the New York State primera vez. Mi nieto se llama Atutahi Maitreya John Charles Waiora Avishai Isaiah Te-Pua- Council on the Arts, and the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs. En Foco is also supported in part by the New Wananga-Ki-Te-Ao Rakuraku Biasiny-Tule. Su lugar en el universo se anuncia con el nom- York Foundation for the Arts, the Association of Hispanic Arts bre maori más sagrado y su hogar está en Nueva Zelanda. Su herencia holandesa, puertor- through the JPMorgan Chase Regrant Program, Coca-Cola riqueña y maori le servirán bien. Bottling Company of New York, Lowepro, Bogen, and the many En Foco members and friends. Es reconfortante aceptar que hay una conciencia perpetua que nos ofrece la posibilidad de, Nueva Luz will make accommodations under algún día, comprender y hacer las cosas bien. Mientras tanto, en el tiempo que nos queda, ADA guidelines for those needing large print. simplemente tenemos que poner un pie enfrente del otro sin destrozar el castillo de arena que hizo otro. Y para los que nos dedicamos a la fotografía, es hora de cuestionar a quién o qué se apunta la cámara y por qué. Cover: Juan Miguel Ramos, El Catrin (The Dandy), 2004. Charles Biasiny-Rivera, Publisher & Editor Giclée print, 20x16.5” * New York Times, Sunday, October 11, 1970 Nueva Luz 1 Tahir Hemphill, Footprints, 1995. Gelatin silver print, 16x20” Editor’s Note These are images of inquiry; they have been made by an explorer of vision. As Tahir Hemphill searches along certain paths, he is sensitive to a variety of symbols. Some are more obvious than others, but all are encoded with the same indescribable content to which he is intuitively is drawn to. When we see the images together, we witness an artist’s trail of discovery. Charles Biasiny-Rivera Artist Statement The photographs in this series, Disposable Rituals, comprise a col- lection of life’s rituals. Some are revered and longstanding, while others are profane and temporal. Often they are both disposed of after their usefulness is exhausted. As an imagemaker, I feel it is my duty to communicate a message that grabs the public’s consciousness and fosters a critical self- reflection. I am interested in how the information in each photo will be consumed, embraced and transmitted. Some will bring our own meaning and value to each idea, creating a unique expe- rience. We, in turn, spread each packet of experience to someone else. Tahir Hemphill 2 Nueva Luz Tahir Hemphill Wedding Party, 1998. Gelatin silver print, 16x20” Nueva Luz 3 Tahir Hemphill Claver Place, 1999. Gelatin silver print, 16x20” 4 Nueva Luz Tahir Hemphill Inez, 1996. Gelatin silver print, 16x20” Nueva Luz 5 Tahir Hemphill Botanica, 2001. Gelatin silver print, 16x20” 6 Nueva Luz Tahir Hemphill Bandera, 2003. Gelatin silver print, 16x20” Nueva Luz 7 Tahir Hemphill Seven Train, 2003. Gelatin silver print, 16x20” 8 Nueva Luz Tahir Hemphill Fashionista, 2003.