Friday, January 29, 2010

Recession

The idea for the small trades project was to look at 'trades' that people had in order to gain money on the side due to the hard economic times. First, I found some crossing guards, the first one that I found was just a college student sitting in a lawn chair doing his homework and then the second was an older man who thoroughly enjoyed his job as a crossing guard. I then happened upon a lady in a dog suit waiving a sign on the corner of a busy street for her company and then on the opposite corner was another lady waiving the Little Ceaser's sign. I then found myself on campus taking some food to my wife while she was at work and decided to take a photograph of her and her colleague.

These Small trades are not necessarily occupations, but once again, a way to survive the economic downturn.
















7 comments:

  1. That first photo is brilliant. I'm not sure why, but the vibrance of color of the crossing guard and his STOP sign in contrast with the sickly winter day is astounding. Even the kid seems dull when compared to the guard.

    I also like the signage in each picture, whether what they're presenting is safety, pizzas, or their own credibility (name tags do wonders, don't they?)

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  2. I love the first one too... its just a great photo. and Megan, she really fits atget's style to me for some reason.

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  3. My favorite is the old man with the stop sign. The way that his body and the sign fill the frame really makes the picture. I also love the idea of the contrast between this man, clearly in the third age, helping school children. To me, it's a commentary on an older generation passing to a younger generation. Nice work.

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  4. The top photo is awesome! I love that the man is fully interacting with the camera. The rest of the pictures are great, too.

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  5. I really like the concept of this photo essay. It's a great idea to depict through photographs the personal side of the depression. Very Walker Evans.

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  6. I really like your focus of the subjects in the photos. Great idea. It was easy to follow your theme throughout from text to photos. Great interpretation.

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  7. Most of these photos are very engaging, but i question how well they represent people who are struggling because of the recession. How do you know that these people are struggling, and how do the photos show that? I have an on campus job that i have regardless of the recession, so i don't see how the last two photos in particular fit with the essay.

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