““This you may say of man—when theories change and crash, when schools, philosophies, when narrow dark alleys of thought, national, religious, economic, grow and disintegrate, man reaches, stumbles forward, painfully, mistakenly sometimes. Having stepped forward, he may slip back, but only half a step, never the full step back. This you may say and know it and know it.””
Blood in the Water, Water in the Lungs considers the physical and emotional effects environmental issues pose on the Gulf coast and Louisiana’s vanishing coastal communities. The series documents the fight and struggle of these communities combating environmental and emotional hardships due to economical and climate crises, through both portraits of people living in these communities and portraits of the place around them and the conditions in which they survive. By confronting these issues through a more graphic lens, I am working to bridge the gap between environmental issues and personal struggle, to call viewers to action and highlight the urgency of such concerns, while also acting as a liaison between government funding, models and statistics, and the real-life consequences of human interference and political legislation.
