if strawberries were made of iron- er, if- um, if we...

"if irony was made out of strawberries..." ©2007 megan arnone

thanks for a great, and by that i mean GREAT couple o' days. despite my [meltdown], which i blame entirely on decaf coffee, we did an outstanding job defensing our projects. if i haven't yet, let me say now how proud i am of everyone. you have put so much genuine thought and emotion into this project- and taken this already so far beyond anyones expectations- it makes me [smile] imagine how this is going to look as a book - [monster]

i owe you all pizza...

[b]mk

so what is vanguard?

i realized last night that some of the viewers of this blog really don't have any background information about vanguard. the project, which is in its fourth year, is about empowering young adults to communicate their world views by using photographs as the vehicle for communication. anyway, the project abstract goes like'a this...
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the goal of the vanguard photography project is relatively simple. by creating a series of photographic works and writing about the images, the students are introduced to the peculiar power of photography to illuminate the subtleties of culture and personal interaction. in collaboration with a visiting artist, the participants propose an avenue of pursuit and create a series of photographs to that end. a participants are free to decide their project directions. past endeavors have shown that some students will choose a traditional documentary approach to their photography, while others investigate a more abstract route. the role of the visiting artist is to direct and advise; to act as facilitator and mentor.
the cross-curricular facets of the project, which include writing and historical investigation, will act to foster a deeper understanding of the history of the region, an appreciation for their particular generational contributions, and through presentations to community groups, an appreciation of certain universal realities connected with growing to adulthood.
the project, which lasts one academic semester, culminates with a an exhibit of student work in a gallery space built for this exhibit at southwestern high school, and the publication of a book and cd of the images.

i can smell the meat and 'taters...

we are fully into the production stage of the project now. as we progress, its imperative that we keep in mind our original goal. that goal is to comment on your life through your photos. we have all chose different directions and aproaches. that's what will make this a great project. we have realized early on that you do not have to create a document in a literal sense- this need not be journalism. simply by pointing out the things you find interesting you tell who you are. a great example is megan arnone's "giant frosted mini wheat". it expresses a simple joyfulness that makes me laugh. kelsey gambrel's winter/spring studies are as tender as they are intriguing.

others have already spent a considerable time developing a theme who's idea came quickly and had an immediate impact. mary ecklund and rachel walbesser both have great images up for view. their themes address respectively, the pressures of society; and the relevance of photography as record of family and friends.

there are others yes, equally good, equally insightful. that is why we need to take some time to investigate each other's blogs. this project is dependent on feedback to help guide us through the sticky bits and to further prove the project's relevancy. so please do each other a big favor and take a moment to leave a message as you browse through each other's images.