19-JUN-2009
Preparation, Jacksonville, Oregon, 2009
I was walking down the main street of this historic town when I saw a woman diligently painting something on the floor of her company’s display window. Perhaps she was painting the floor itself? It was hard to know, since I was standing across the street at the time. I photographed her for about fifteen minutes as she worked. In this, my favorite image of her, she paints with intense concentration. She never noticed me. Her body language is graceful – I like the way she holds the brush in one hand, and uses the other hand as a bracket to support the rest of her. Whatever she may be painting, there is obviously pride in authorship here. The window appears to me as a stage. Hanging flowers on one side, a civic banner on the other, lend a celebratory touch. Even the drapes play a role – they seem like a curtain waiting to descend. I felt like clapping as I moved on.
22-JUN-2009
Pilot, Astoria, Oregon, 2009
The sign on the boat provides workplace context for the man coming down the ladder here. The image uses color to bring it to life – the reds and yellows of the ladder, the red shirt, and the world of brown and green awaiting the pilot energize the image. Even the old tires acting as bumpers on the boat add a bit of red and black, echoing the colors of the man’s shirt. We don’t see his face, but see his effort, and we know where he is headed.
26-JUN-2009
Glassmakers (1), Museum of Glass, Tacoma, Washington, 2009
I found this shadow of a fist holding a glassblowing rod seemingly etched upon a golden table. It is a powerful workplace symbol of a complex and difficult art. A team of artglass makers provides live demonstrations whenever this museum is open.
26-JUN-2009
Glassmakers (2), Museum of Glass, Tacoma, Washington, 2009
A team of artglass makers confronts a decision. The man with the lettered t-shirt is the artist, while the other three must execute his art. An unfinished orb of glass rests on its rod while the group decides what comes next. It is a common workplace moment – the decision making process is at the very heart of matter.
26-JUN-2009
Glassmakers (3), Museum of Glass, Tacoma, Washington, 2009
The museum has turned the workplace into a theatre – you can even watch the performances stream live on the museum’s web site during operating hours. I made this image of glassmaking as performance. I’ve abstracted one of the artists by shooting down on her from an overhead vantage point. Instead of showing who she is, I try to say what she is, and how she feels about what she does. I pressed my shutter button as she brought her body forward to study a tiny piece of decorate art glass, still on the glassblower’s rod. Her hand holds the rod as a violist would hold a bow – with intention and strength. My image bonds her to her task – my composition has her array of tools flowing directly into her bowing form. It is if she is taking a curtain call, while still working.
12-NOV-2008
Making bricks, Tozeur, Tunisia, 2008
The flow of wet clay, kneaded by swiftly powerful hands, makes a powerful image of a man at work. I used my camera’s shutter priority program to set a fast shutter speed of 1/500th of a second to catch the action. The worker’s right hand is moving so fast that even at that shutter speed, there remains a hint of blur in it, an effect that charges the image with energy. The heavily textured clay-covered skin lends further incongruity.
09-NOV-2008
Closing time, Kairouan, Tunisia, 2008
This man is closing up his shop for the evening. There is a strange green light beyond the doors, framing a room full of equipment and materials. A star and crescent, the symbol of Tunisia, draws the eye and adds important context. The man is about to leave – his moving legs and feet become a mass of blur. (And yes, that’s Nike logo on his hat.)
08-NOV-2008
Labor intensive, Sousse, Tunisia, 2008
This man is restoring the exterior of a building in historic walled medina of Sousse, where some of the structures date back to the eighth and ninth centuries. He seemed to be exhausted. The morning light allows me to reveal only the highlights of his face as he bends for a moment to gather his strength. Just as important is the shadow that nearly touches his elbow – it doubles his response, magnifying the toll that this work takes from his body.
13-NOV-2008
Early to work, Tozeur, Tunisia, 2008
Every now and then I find an expressive travel image only a few feet away from my own hotel room. That’s what happened here. I was on my way to breakfast (camera in hand, of course) and saw a housekeeper walking past the windows of the hotel’s glass enclosed indoor swimming pool. The windows were dripping in condensation and made opaque, a perfect target for the morning sun that illuminates the window from behind. I was able to contrast the dogged body language of the housekeeper -- head down, striding to work, and dragging her equipment behind her -- to the golden promise of the new day.
12-NOV-2008
Date harvest, Tozeur, Tunisia, 2008
This man is standing barefoot in a palm tree, high above the ground. He is gathering dates in a Sahara oasis, just outside Tozeur. He works with utter confidence in bare feet. He shows no sign of fear or caution. He grasps the palm frond, knowing that it will not break and send him to his death. Although it may appear that I am up in the tree with him, I am not. I am on the ground, and use a 200mm telephoto focal length to bring him into close range.
06-NOV-2008
Weaver, Tunis, Tunisia, 2008
While walking through the narrow streets of the ancient Tunis medina, we noticed a door ajar, and loom within. A weaver was working at it. We pointed to our cameras and nodded. He nodded back. We entered the small room, and I immediately began to work with my 24mm wideangle lens, which emphasized the size of the loom in relationship to the weaver. As he reached forward to draw the moveable part of the loom towards him, I made this image of strength, determination, and skill. We can even see the creases in his forehead as he strains to reach out and grasp the loom.
18-MAY-2008
Scale, Fiddletown, California, 2008
During California’s Gold Rush, many miners came to Fiddletown to buy their supplies. This scale, made in England, could possibly have been used by these miners to weigh gold bearing rocks. While rusty, it still bears some of the green paint that brightened a workplace. I moved close to reveal texture and color by spot-metering on the brightest point and letting the shadows add a sense of dimension.