About two years ago I literally stumbled upon (stumbleupon.com) a video from TED talks. The video was center on the French photographer JR and his One Wish, which was simply "Use art to turn the world inside out".
His beginnings grabbed my attention but his mission completely captured it. I wasn't much into photography or photographers until I watched his videos, seen his work, and read his story. JR was the single person that drew my attention to the photography world. Showing me that photography wasn't just simple pictures of beauty but an art form that can and does speak volumes.
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| "Women are Heroes", Rio de Janiero, Brasil |
What strikes me the most is not only the portraits/photos themselves but of the nearly forced interaction between unsuspecting audiences and the subjects. In his early pieces took photos of "street thugs" after a series of riots and pasted the photos illegally through the richer streets of Paris. A few years later JR started project called "Face 2 Face" which united Israelis and Palestinians, then yet again JR started a project titled "Women are Heroes", to pay homage to women and their suffering from conflicts.
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| "Face 2 Face", Separation Wall Security Fence Israeli Side, Abu Dis, Jerusalem |
JR used his photos to connect the media with people, to show the world that what we see in the media is only a small part of the whole. That people can continue to live through violent conflicts that not only effect themselves but others.
JR's shows that life still continues during any hardship.
~Jazz
(photos courtesy of JR on
http://www.jr-art.net/)
