Brenda Ann Kenneally "Upstate Girls"

[kevin m]

Slideshow and interview.

 

[Sisyphus]

She is excellent--incredible person, an amzing photographer, and a very compassionate person. I went to graduate school with her, and I was always inspired by the work that she was showing us, which she later submitted and received the W. Eugene Smith Grant. The body of work was on Bedford Stuyvesant neighborhood about drug use--incredible images, and very heartbreaking at the same time.

:S:

 

[squirrel$$$bandit]

stunning work.

 

[kevin m]

...incredible images, and very heartbreaking at the same time.

Funny how often those two seem to go together.

The subjects were awash in the flotsam and jetsam of consumer culture: Dunkin' Donuts cups, Mountain Dew bottles, Britney poster, Sponge Bob mask, Coca Cola underpants and Oreo pajamas. Where in the hell do you even buy Oreo pajamas? 😕🙁

 

[SolaresLarrave]

Thanks for posting this one, Kevin!

 

[funkaoshi]

Great photos and interview. Thanks for the link. America's prison system is both fascinating and depressing.

 

[cjm]

Very powerful images.

 

[kevin m]

It's a very simple image, and actually one of the least outwardly disturbing in the series, but the shot of the little kid wearing a Sponge Bob mask standing in a vacant lot just gets me.

 

[-doomed-]

Thank you for posting this up , the photos really depicted things rarely seen outside of those homes, and the interview was fantastic as well.

With that said

This article really gets you thinking about the state of things here in America, well spend billions fighting wars and giving aid in foreign countries , yet here at home it seems a blind eye is turned . The only people paying attention to the poor in america are more concerned about selling them the next greatest game, shoes and so on.

 

[kevin m]

The only people paying attention to the poor in america are more concerned about selling them the next greatest game, shoes and so on.

And, of course, the Army recruiter.

 

[Tuolumne]

Stunning work and a real downer. They guys with guns and the big knife were really scary.

/T

 

[Spider67]

Keeps me wondering....As most states in the northern hemisphere are rich states...wehre does the money go....and it continues with some big companies who when it comes to a slight raise in pay or paid workhours say "sorry we have no money" only to proclaim at the end of fiscal year that they've reached a 30% raise in revenue or even profits.
....That#s were Europeans and Americans are pretty much in the same boat.

Great photos! touching interview thanks for posting

 

[totifoto]

Very powerful images.

I agree, these pictures say more than millions of words. Just amazing.

 

[raid]

It is very sad indeed. Why?

 

[Shadowplay]

Looked like a lot of able-bodied people living in their own filth. More pathetic than sad, really.

 

[Sam N]

Reading the article gives a lot more insight into why things have gotten the way they are. It's easy to just call these people lazy, and that may be true in some cases, but the reality isn't that simple.

 

[squirrel$$$bandit]

Here in central NY, there is a great deal of economic misery, poverty, and crystal meth addiction. We never got to participate in the real estate and stock booms. Where I live, Ithaca, has actually done fine, but we have several colleges, including Cornell.

But you get a few miles out of town, and you're in the world of those photos.

 

[rbiemer]

Difficult but important photos. Thanks for the link, Kevin.
Rob