As I was walking my security rounds I thinking through the project. I
need to humanize the workers more, photos are not enough. I need to
learn personal information to connect the viewer with the subject more.
If I can make the viewer think of the person in terms of their own
lives, their own girlfriends, sisters, wives, daughters then the project would have
greater impact. I need to find out personal info on each of the workers
I photograph. How many sisters, brothers they have, their hometown, age (they sometime lie about this),
their hopes, their thoughts, maybe a quote and of course their names.
The quote might be the most powerful extra I could add.
The problem is of course language. If they speak English Thai or Laotian (similar to Thai) I will not have to much of a problem but I only know a few words of Burmese and Khmer and no Vietnamese or hill tribe dialects. Maybe a translator is the answer thou working with others always brings about extra baggage. I am used to doing 100% of everything myself, its been me, myself, and I on all my photo projects through the years, to bring others in would be difficult for me and problematic.
If I title a photograph "Brothel Worker #1" that's not enough, I can call the photograph brothel worker but I then need to hit the viewer with more personal information, I need them to relate and feel for the subject more. Maybe I can ask the worker what her dreams are, what she would wish for if she could.
The combination of the close powerful portrait and that persons name, age and dream quote could really work well. Imagine 10-36 inch on the vertical colourful head shots on a wall. They would be framed in 4 or 5 foot white wood with the personal info and dreams of the subject written large directly on the print . It could all be be very powerful.
I might even be able to have a GoPro video of the making of the pictures at the exhibition so the viewer could hear the subjects own voice, that would really humanize and personalize this work. This could be the most important project I ever create. I wish I could start tomorrow but I first I need to earn the money to pay for everything. No public art folks are going to give me a grant for these photographs, its all up to me, today I work security tomorrow I will create.
The problem is of course language. If they speak English Thai or Laotian (similar to Thai) I will not have to much of a problem but I only know a few words of Burmese and Khmer and no Vietnamese or hill tribe dialects. Maybe a translator is the answer thou working with others always brings about extra baggage. I am used to doing 100% of everything myself, its been me, myself, and I on all my photo projects through the years, to bring others in would be difficult for me and problematic.
If I title a photograph "Brothel Worker #1" that's not enough, I can call the photograph brothel worker but I then need to hit the viewer with more personal information, I need them to relate and feel for the subject more. Maybe I can ask the worker what her dreams are, what she would wish for if she could.
The combination of the close powerful portrait and that persons name, age and dream quote could really work well. Imagine 10-36 inch on the vertical colourful head shots on a wall. They would be framed in 4 or 5 foot white wood with the personal info and dreams of the subject written large directly on the print . It could all be be very powerful.
I might even be able to have a GoPro video of the making of the pictures at the exhibition so the viewer could hear the subjects own voice, that would really humanize and personalize this work. This could be the most important project I ever create. I wish I could start tomorrow but I first I need to earn the money to pay for everything. No public art folks are going to give me a grant for these photographs, its all up to me, today I work security tomorrow I will create.
