A New Project
I’ve been mining the archive here at the studio, searching for images from the past that were either overlooked or left out of the edit because they didn’t fit the story at the time. My project is to find a few select images that are not only photographically striking but also have an interesting historical context or relation to present day events. Taking advantage of Ed’s vast archive from over 30 years of work, this is an exercise in talking about photography and why particular images resonate while exploring the ways in which the past intersects the present.
With the President primed to give a speech tonight about withdrawing troops in Iraq while broadening the presence in Afghanistan (and not to mention the not-so-secret operations in Yemen and Pakistan), I thought this image would be the perfect entrée into this new series. The image was taken a little over seven years ago in April 2003 in the Afghan village of Loy Kariz. The majority of Ed’s images are taken in and among the troops and the Afghan citizens, it is his preference to be up close, but with this image he's created some distance. Shooting through the window, from an enclosed space peering out, creates a separation between viewer and subject. The viewer, looking through this window (from the comfy confines of our home or wherever we are), is separated not only in time and space, but maybe even in feelings about the war. Without getting overly metaphorical, there’s also something about peering through a torn mesh screen that reflects the situation in Afghanistan. It’s vital, especially in wartime, to take stock of where we are in the grand scheme. Seven years later from when this image was taken, we are no further along on this supposed path to victory in Afghanistan. Seven years later, we still haven’t even begun to understand this land, this people that so many have tried to conquer. And seven years later, countless lives have been lost. We are finally starting to withdraw from Iraq and that is great, but we are sending more troops to Afghanistan, and for what outcome? So far, these wars have really only served to create an entirely more volatile situation than the one we set out to eradicate.
With the President primed to give a speech tonight about withdrawing troops in Iraq while broadening the presence in Afghanistan (and not to mention the not-so-secret operations in Yemen and Pakistan), I thought this image would be the perfect entrée into this new series. The image was taken a little over seven years ago in April 2003 in the Afghan village of Loy Kariz. The majority of Ed’s images are taken in and among the troops and the Afghan citizens, it is his preference to be up close, but with this image he's created some distance. Shooting through the window, from an enclosed space peering out, creates a separation between viewer and subject. The viewer, looking through this window (from the comfy confines of our home or wherever we are), is separated not only in time and space, but maybe even in feelings about the war. Without getting overly metaphorical, there’s also something about peering through a torn mesh screen that reflects the situation in Afghanistan. It’s vital, especially in wartime, to take stock of where we are in the grand scheme. Seven years later from when this image was taken, we are no further along on this supposed path to victory in Afghanistan. Seven years later, we still haven’t even begun to understand this land, this people that so many have tried to conquer. And seven years later, countless lives have been lost. We are finally starting to withdraw from Iraq and that is great, but we are sending more troops to Afghanistan, and for what outcome? So far, these wars have really only served to create an entirely more volatile situation than the one we set out to eradicate.
posted by Alison Shuman at 3:41 PM
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