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Current Residence: Brooklyn, NY Motto: Try to find beauty in the most common things This Trenchtown project was the result of a month-long assignment in Jamaica. Smith, along with two other staff from the Brooklyn-based nonprofit arts group, Red Clay Arts, taught children ages 12 – 18 how to document their unique lives through photography and digital art. Trenchtown, Jamaica, an area of Kingston most known for being the home of reggae artist Bob Marley, is also considered one of the most notoriously dangerous areas of Jamaica. Trenchtown became infamous for embodying one of the great cultural truths of improvised, formally colonized areas: for every sad, depressed and seemingly hopeless situation, there is a wellspring of talent, and deep-seated spirituality oozing from the crevices of the alleyways, government yards, and side streets. This exhibition of the work of Scott Ellison Smith embodies, challenges, and exposes this reality. Through the graininess of the 35mm black and white photos, the angles and selection of shots, and the gaze of the subject, a certain intimacy, reflexivity, and respect is exposed. Ethnographic photography is a tricky beast. Most photographers sensitive to world history have to ask themselves about their role in possibly perpetuating the myth of the exotic Other, where people from “Third world” countries become objects to be studied because of their “primitive, aberrant ways” as opposed to seen as fellow human beings sharing similar life experiences. However, in this work, Smith seems to have stepped over that mental hurdle with relative ease. By living among the people, Smith uses the camera as a third eye to explore the simple, honest truths of life: a girl washing clothes as two young boys stand in the distance smiling – consciously or unconsciously – corroborating the perception that patriarchy and sexism begin in the very early stages of life; a man proudly embracing his son; bare feet children climbing walls tagged with political insignias, for instance. With his camera, Smith captures the universal human truths that reveal the interconnectedness of our world experiences. The work in this project is a glimpse into the mundane, the innocent, and the potentially problematic. This work is one man’s understanding of the truth of Trenchtown, Jamaica. Some of his work may reinforce your perception of the enchanted home of Marley, other shots may remind you of impoverished lands filtering throughout the world; a few may not move you at all, while one may capture your heart. But that’s life: a range of emotions, experiences, perceptions and realities. Whatever you feel, welcome to a slice of Trenchtown as seen through the wondrously sharp eyes of Scott Ellison Smith. |
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