Best Friends + Brick Wall, Halim Ina, Uttar Pradesh, India, 2019

For those of us interested in supporting this school, and for those of us already on board, here are a few images from earlier this year. More than a dozen years ago I was introduced to this village thanks to Humana India. This house back then was home to a school for girls, and the older sisters of the girls presently were the students. The school for girls continues to this day with private support, and girls continue to attend classes daily. It's a magical space!

Para aquellos de nosotros interesados en apoyar a esta escuela, y para aquellos de nosotros que ya estamos, aquí hay algunas imágenes de principios de este año. Hace más de una docena de años, me presentaron a este pueblo gracias a Humana India. Esta casa en ese entonces era el hogar de una escuela para niñas, y las hermanas mayores de las niñas eran las estudiantes. La escuela para niñas continúa hasta el día de hoy con apoyo privado, y las niñas continúan asistiendo a clases diariamente. ¡Es un espacio mágico! 

Website

Tumblr

Twitter

Facebook
Instagram

Young Students + Window Light, Shamli District, UP, India, 2017

Once again a portrait of two students is being shared with those of us involved in their new school. Thanks to Nirvana and his team at Nirvanavan Foundation the possibility of this school was born, and thanks to those tagged within this post that possibility has turned into a reality.

My photographic work began in this district thanks to Asrar, who had taken me there to document the thousands of refugees from the recent Muzaffarnagar riots. This was one village which we visited, and I fell in love with the area. While the children were of course beautiful and the environment surrounding the homes took my breath away, it was the generous nature of the supporting families which impressed me most.

So last year Nirvana provided me with incredible insight, making it clear to me that something needed to be done. The local elders did the same, asking for our help in the education of their grandchildren. This was the impetus in bringing the new school to your attention, and thanks to your generosity the first donation has already been sent, while the second donation is only a few weeks from being sent as well. This will allow us to remain on schedule, and all can rest assured that the first two years' worth of budget has already been put aside.

Website

Tumblr

Twitter

Facebook
Instagram

Congratulations to all, and thank you in advance for allowing me to tag you!

Four Frames in the Life of a Brick Laborer, Uttar Pradesh, India, 2015

Can any of us imagine a lifetime rather than four frames? Thousands of miles away from our homes? Our children being forced to come along and live in single rooms made from these very bricks?

Can we estimate how many times he has walked the path between the wall of bricks and the ones laid down on the ground beneath his feet? Does he get to eat three times a day, or perhaps once and only when food is available?

What does the family do after the sun sets? How and where do the children sleep? Is it a thin sheet separating them from the hard floor? What prevents them from being bitten all night long by the mosquitos raised in the water necessary for the making of the bricks?

Today, questions and only questions for the answers are lacking.

Website

Tumblr

Twitter

Facebook

Note: These frames were exposed using a Fuji GA645i.

Our Hosts In Their Kitchen, Madhya Pradesh, 2016

On our way to photograph the schools in Madhya Pradesh, we were guided by Nirvana to visit a friend and his wife about two thirds of the way down. This way we could rest, and also begin the research regarding the communities in the area dealing in the sex trade. Nirvana desired to perhaps begin the process of education in these villages, and this was the first step.

So when we arrived in the night the town looked quite daunting. It was dark, the streets were so tight and empty. We were totally lost until this man stepped out into the street with a flashlight waving us to his home. The home looked like any other until we entered, then it looked like a fantasy. The colors were out of this world, and it was the original mud construction.

Our host had laid out three mats on the floor, and one on a small bed. His beautiful wife had gone out of her way to make dinner for the three of us, as well as tea of course. We washed up in the beautiful bathrooms, and headed back inside for a great meal with the best bread in my experience traveling India.

When it was time to sleep, our host refused to sleep on the bed, and chose to sleep next to Mukesh and Rahul on the floor. This man, in his mid-70s was fitter than any of us, certainly physically and more than certainly mentally. He laid down without hesitation and all of us went to sleep.

The next morning he woke up well before 5 a.m. and was moving around an hour or so before any of us woke up. He had made tea for us, as well as some snacks. Both of our hosts were ready well before us, and both greeted our tired faces with smiles that morning.

This image was made on our way back from the schools, as we stayed for another night. The next day we would visit two Kanjar villages and begin our research on behalf of Nirvanavan Foundation.

Website

Tumblr

Twitter

Facebook

Note: This image was made with a Sony RX100M3 with available light.

Young Student, Humana India, Madhya Pradesh, India, 2016

While in Gurgaon today, I thought back to my time in this beautiful state last week. Snapshots of the landscape come flooding back, the contrasts between the girls' fabrics and the earth, both in color and texture. 

This young girl is a student in Humana People to People India's Step Up Program, and will be transitioning to the government school within the next two weeks. Her home is located across the mountains in the background, and for the past 12 months she had walked over 3 kilometers to achieve her goal of making that transition.

The wind was blowing incredibly hard that afternoon, and held the fabric against her body securely. We made images as the fabric blew into different positions, while she maintained her composure perfectly.

I hope that next year when we do visit this area once again, she and her friends are indeed in the formal educational system, and that we can once again make photographs, perhaps with her in a beautiful school uniform this time.

Website

Tumblr

Twitter

Facebook

Note: This image was made with a Sony RX100M3.

Young Boy + Kanjar Community, Nirvanavan Foundation, India, 2016

I present this portrait as a follow-up to the previous post, as he is a young boy from the same community as the two young woman. He will one day decide the fate of his sister, and perhaps his community.

Here he stands in front of a home locked for the season, with the family on a surreal vacation. They have gone to the big cities to present their daughters to the sex trade. They have left behind the younger children under the care of Nirvanavan Foundation, as Nirvana and his team have arranged a hostel to take care of the children daily. They provide classes as well as two meals a day for the time being.

Nirvana and his team are seeking to build a permanent structure for these children and it is my aim to help on my end to make this happen. Anyone affected by this post, and the earlier one, may also help make this happen through this collaboration... just send me a note and we'll brainstorm.

What will this boy and his brothers decide? Will they continue to place their sisters into the sex trade? Will they continue to earn their living from the services their sisters provide? Will they perhaps go another way? Will the classes held by Nirvana and his foundation have their intended effect?

My hope is that he and his brothers see another way. The obstacles are great, as seen by their lavish homes in the midst of rural India. Their earthly profits are substantial, without the men working a single day in the fields as their neighbors do on a daily basis. The temptations are almost insurmountable... yet I believe that this boy has the potential to overcome.

This is my hope, and what keeps me coming to Nirvanavan Foundation over and over again.

Website

Tumblr

Twitter

Facebook

Note: This image was made with a Sony RX100M3 with the courageous help of Mukesh Poswal.

Campesino + Machete, Matanzas, Cuba, 2014

This year especially Alejandro and I will be heading out into the countryside, certainly to put as much space between us and the wave of tourists certain to flood the capital this summer. We will however search for that timeless face of the island, more prevalent in the countryside than anywhere else.

Driving into the countryside with Alejandro is so rewarding. We chat the entire time, we stop whenever we like for something to eat, we drive up dead-end paths looking for that illusive face and meet workers on the sides of the roads all of the time.

This was the case when we met this man, as we were heading deep into Matanzas. Alejandro noticed a coal farm to our left and we decided to enter. The men were working at the time, and directed us to the boss for permission. The boss happened to be a woman, and after a few minutes of conversation she allowed me to photograph the men.

The sun was high, so we decided to make abstract portraits and images rather than the directly lit portraits. These two images were the result of the encounter, and have taught me much about using whatever light is available to tell the story.

The man was great, and allowed me to both make his portrait and his hand up in the air with perhaps the most iconic symbol of the countryside on the island. Whenever a Cuban seems these images, the first thing they say is 'Cuban!'

Website

Tumblr

Twitter

Facebook

Note: These images were made by a Hasselblad 555 ELD/180 mm combination onto Fuji Neopan Acros 100 ISO film.

Young Student + Academy for Working Children, Humana People to People India, Neemrana, India, March of 2015

This little girl just happened to steal the show, of course unintentionally. She walked onto the roof like nothing happened, and just took my breath away with her expression and her cap! She of course recognized this right away, and took to smiling the rest of the time until her portrait was made.

After the photography, she stood by watching us put everything away… and I took my cap off to show her my lack of hair. It was at this time that a young boy snapped her cap off, and her own beautifully short head of hair was on glorious display for all to see. She was more than a little bit embarrassed in the cutest of possible ways, as she just smiled and shrugged her shoulders while giggling until she managed to put her cap back on.

The rest of my morning was spent making videos of the school children, now and then looking her way and just smiling the entire time hoping that her portrait translated well onto film for all of us to see later!

Website

Twitter

Tumblr

Worker + Tools, Countryside, Cuba, Summer of 2014

On our way back to the city Alejandro took me through a small town where we ran across this gentleman as he was working to clear the weeds from the sidewalk. We pulled over across the street and worked our way over to have a conversation. The entire time we spoke with this gentle man he had this smile, even though he had worked under the intense sun all morning.

This was his job, and he performed it daily even though he was well into his ninth decade. He was interested in our work and accepted being photographed. So we hurried to set up the camera, and began making these images. It was during the image of the tools in the air that a man came up to us and inquired as to our intent. 

This happens so often that I have gained an unfortunate habit, to acknowledge the person asking questions while focusing on the person being photographed at the same time. In this case Alejandro spoke my name and told me that this was the gentleman's son. Talk about putting the foot in the mouth!

While the son was suspicious, he did listen to our story and allowed us to continue while his father kept this same smile all along. Soon he will have these images, and his son will hopefully see that our intent was indeed true.

www.halimina.org

Note: These images were made with a Hasselblad 555 ELD/180 mm combination onto Fuji Neopan Acros 100 ISO film.