One year ago I emailed Somaly Mam from Thailand; I had little expectation that she would have time for me, but I asked if we might meet. She said to call when I arrived in Phnom Penh. So I did and that was the start of several days with AFESIP and an introduction to the Cambodian response to human trafficking. It also happened that Queen Sofia of Spain, an avid supporter, was to visit Somaly; I was invited to join.

Tragedy befell the Queen and she returned to Spain before she could make a visit to the aftercare centers she helps support.

One year later, and after I had finished my photography at AFESIP for Stop Exploitation Now, I stopped by the office to drop off a laptop computer. Somaly happened to be back in the country and Queen Sofia was set to arrive in two days. And so I was invited again.

It’s not an unfamiliar style of photography, but I had no idea while here in Cambodia that I would be faced with the elbowing and shoving of a press corps. But I had to buck up and push and shove like the best to make some images.

Not really sure what these will ever be used for, but it’s a nice full circle with AFESIP.

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The Open Society Institute, a part of the Soros Foundation, awarded Tim Matsui and the FEAR Project a $22,300 Project Distribution Grant for speaker presentations in school districts and to community and professional groups in the Greater Seattle Metropolitan Area. The effective dates are January to December, 2008.

This significant award, the first of this magnitude for both Tim Matsui and the FEAR Project, will permit the FEAR to expand its already existing speaker program currently presenting in three area school districts and to professional and community groups. Each presentation is a facilitated discussion accompanied by FEAR multimedia, photographed and recorded by Tim Matsui, hosted by either a professional in the field of violence prevention and education, victim services, or legal, or by a survivor capable of speaking about his or her personal experience in the context of the media.

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For me, the beauty of this grant is not only in the professional recognition, but it further solidifies the organization’s structure and commitment. The board members and volunteer ’staff’ I work with now have a significant sum of money to manage and an explicit end goal to achieve.

I, personally, will not see much of this money unless I choose to be compensated for speaking; the funds will support the *organization’s* efforts to distribute this media, not mine.

And that is way cool. As beautiful as the FEAR Project is, and as proud as I am of what I–with the help of many–have been able to achieve so far, it is a commitment that weighs heavily upon me.

The more others identify with the project, and come to own it, the happier I will be because I have long since realized the potential in the Project and how there is no way I will be able to achieve it on my own.

If you’d asked me when I made the very first FEAR slide show, or became a Blue Earth Alliance sponsored project if I thought I’d be running a non profit in five years…I’d have asked how much you’d had to drink that night. But here we are…

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The Magazine wants one thing, Public Relations wants a different version of it, the Agency just wants it and in eight minutes total you have to satisfy all three. All I can say is, working with good PR people and some trusting editors is essential to pulling it off.

The client was L’Express, a French publication referred through an agency partnership–I believe in went Magazine-French Agency-American Agency-to me. The writer was in Vegas for the Computer Expo, Microsoft France was flying a PR person over, and I would meet the local team upon arrival.

The Job? Photograph Bill Gates looking like “Bill,” the guy next door. No assistant, no heavy lighting, just quick and natural.

To the Home of the Future we went where the writer got a tour and I checked out locations. I set up a couple of camera strobes on stands with wireless remote triggers to help bring up the light. I was allowed one setup as Bill was walking in, I would get a few frames during the 45 minute interview, and one setup as he was leaving.

Right on time, Bill walked in. I started shooting reportage-style; the light was poor, the furniture in the way, and basically I didn’t make a usable frame. Quickly, I directed him to the kitchen counter, “Sit down, look comfortable, chat up the writer.” I made frames for about three minutes and stopped before the PR people pulled him away.

During the interview I was asked to stop shooting; so I listened. The writer’s questions had already been screened, Bill had been briefed, and I watched as the writer pushed and pulled back in gentle waves of conversation. Bill tapped his foot and looked around as he spoke, often gesturing grandly while laughing.

What I remember is Bill talking about his day being full of malaria papers for his foundation, accessible because of the connectivity the internet offers. He went on to describe how he became interested in the issues of the poor; in the 90’s he visited Africa where he saw true poverty. To loosely paraphrase him, he said you can’t know it until you get out there and see it in person. For him it underscored a moral duty for the wealthy to aid the poor.

Shortly, PDA’s and watches were being checked. “One more question,” the French Microsoft PR person said. I got up, double checked my gear, powered up the strobes. Bill walked out, writer in tow asking questions. I sat Bill down in a chair: “Look this way, hold the Tablet PC, cross your legs, nice, nice, now look this way, great, thank you!” And off he went, the writer slipping in one more question as they walked down the hall.

To my surprise, one of the local Microsoft PR people asked “Did you get a picture of all of us together? My 11 year-old wants to see I really work with Bill.”

For all of its machinations, I’ve enjoyed every instance working with the Microsoft public relations; the staff are wonderfully personable, explicit in their needs and understanding of mine. And they’re real people too. Quite fun.

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Last spring I applied of the Kent City Summer Arts Program; three works were accepted, one was purchased for the city’s permanent collection, and I was offered a two-month solo exhibition.

Flash forward to January 7, 2008, the night before I’m to hang the show. It’s 4.30 in the morning and I’m finally wrapping up a show that is part FEAR Project and part Human Trafficking. (at right: l-r Shannon, Alison C, Allison S)

It took some negotiation, but those who govern the art program in Kent agreed there was important social value in the work I was offering to present; with appropriate image choice and captioning this public venue could house a challenging exhibition.

Alison C, Allison S, Shannon W and myself–under the tutelage of Shannon–hung the 25 image show on January 8 in only a couple of hours. It felt good to get it on the walls and I feel it looked good too–some of the pictures I’d only seen on a computer screen. Before we finished, people were looking and some stopped to discuss which something the work is intended to do: evoke conversation and awareness. (at left: already viewing the work)

A few days later I had a call from the program director who said officials had found two images excessively explicit (a Chiang Mai street boy likely abused showing hyper sexual behavior and prostitutes in Phnom Penh learning how to use condoms on a wooden). They also requested some caption changes and the removal of the Revised Code of Washington definition of rape in the first degree. (at right: not enough sleep, but happy to be done….with this task)

I understand that not everyone is going to agree that, in a public space unavoidable to many, reality needs to be seen for what it is. The program director was very kind in her personal commentary and took care of all the changes required for the exhibit to remain.

This is not the first time my work was found challenging, but it’s good to know that some of it is up and it still has a chance to have an impact. We need to know about our world lest our ignorance perpetuate the violence.

An immense thank you to Andrew Hida, who banged out the mattes, and Shannon, Alison C, and Allison S for their help with hanging the show. My heartfelt thank you to Cheryl dos Remedios, the program director, and her help with showing this work to the city of Kent. (at left: the remains)

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Multimedia journalist Kaj Larsen investigates , and subjects himself to, the practice of waterboarding, an interrogation technique allegedly used by the U.S. government. Larsen produced this in the summer of 2006 but it continues to be an issue in question, what with the Attorney General hearings. Is is it a “grave breach” of the Geneva Conventions or is it a valid interrogation technique? If a detainee may be harboring information which could save the lives of many, how far can interrogators go?

View the embedded file or go to the original post.

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View the EDITED MEDIA SHOW (you can scroll or pause for the text)
View the BEHIND THE SCENES PIX

I’ve wanted to do this concept for years but lacked a client, the funding, and a community to work with. This event was finally spawned earlier this year when I was introduced to Deb Hinchey, the Director of Wellness and Health Promotion at Seattle University. Our mutual interest in saving the world, and in issues surrounding trauma, were a cause to connect. A birthday party (hers), spilled wine, and similar relationship sagas were starters, but when one of my friends started dating her I was reminded just how awesome Canadian women are and saw a potential client turn into a true friend.

While we had months of planning time, of course we left it to the last minute. But together Deb and I, with the help of Deb’s Peer Health Action Team (PHAT), her graduate adviser Ryan, in cooperation with Student Activities, and with Housing and Residence Life, in ten days we built a model program we can now offer as a FEAR Project service to other campuses. In fact, our first client request came shortly afterwards from the University of Washington, Tacoma.

We spent one day making portraits of the campus community, building a body of work that put faces to the statistics, and then a week later had a gallery opening with prints and a looping media show. In a highly traveled part of campus we asked people if they wanted their portrait done to acknowledge they are part of a community affected by sexual violence; it was a non-traditional approach to public awareness and the admission that sexual violence doesn’t just happen to “those people over there” but it happens “here, in my community, to people I know.”

Some of the project goals were to:
• Create dialogue in order to build an aware and empathetic community less likely to silence survivors
• Decrease the stigma surrounding the reporting of sexual assaults on campus
• Engage students in the issue of sexual assault in a creative way through the combination of photographs and narrative, creating an impact far greater than statistics alone
• Gather anecdotal data about the incidence and prevalence of sexual assault on the Seattle University campus

The photo session started off calmly as the PHAT volunteers put up signs and polished their statements; imagine making eye contact with hurried students, staff, or faculty–people actively avoiding your eyes–and approaching them to talk about sexual violence–rape, of all things. Not only that, but you have to explain as they proceed to walk on by that you want their portrait, a model release, and an anonymous questionnaire. Well, before long, I had people waiting for me to take their portrait and, at times, the wait was five to eight people deep. I could have used a second shooter. I think the volunteers did an amazing job of recruiting and running the show; I only had to make pictures.

I processed the images, sent them to the printer, then left town for my sister’s wedding. Again, the volunteers–chiefly my “intern,” photographer Andrew Hida, Deb’s GA Ryan Hamachek, and student Stephanie Squires–handled the rest by mounting 50 prints for display. All I had left was to build the media show.

Why is all this a big deal? Personally, I’m just happy it went off well. But let’s start with the first request for our services: the University of Washington, Tacoma. Next, Deb’s boss asked her to submit the project to the National Association of Student Personnel Administrators Excellence Awards; apparently this is a big deal in the world of higher education.

What really excites me is hearing that students were going back to their dorms and asking their friends if they’d had their picture taken; looking a portrait subject in the eye to thank him or her and hearing back “no, thank you;” to have busy people make a point of coming back later in the day to pose; to have classmates and fellow faculty come specifically for the portraits; later, when at the opening, to see these same people arrive with their friends in tow to see their portraits. All of this was done in the context of sexual violence awareness; it was providing a safe way for students to start the dialogue and see how receptive someone may be.

But let me just qualify all of this with some hard data Deb shared with me. She writes in her NASPA award proposal:

“Sexual assault is a serious issue on college campuses across the nation. At least 1 in 4 college women will be the victim of a sexual assault during her academic career.(1) About 90% of rape and sexual assault victims on college campuses knew their attacker prior to the assault,(2) and women who attend college are more likely to be sexually assaulted than women who choose not to attend college.(3) On the campus of Seattle University (SU), data collected through the National College Health Assessment in 2007 reflect similar numbers. Despite these alarming statistics, less than 5% of all rapes or attempted rapes on college campuses are ever reported to authorities. (4)

“The Office for Wellness and Health Promotion recently entered its second year in existence on the SU campus. In its role, the Office develops and implements sexual assault prevention, awareness and response programming. However, despite repeated efforts to reach students through workshops, speakers and the like, attendance at such events has been minimal, begging the question of what can be done to create the necessary dialogue around this critical issue.” (at left: the senate plays for the opening)

Well, it looks like the FEAR Project helped create that dialogue, and not just to tell women how to be afraid. We want to change social norms around sexual violence; it’s not just a women’s issue, nor is it only a men’s problem. It is a community issue we all must address. Next up? Packaging this for other campuses and communities.

(1) Hirsch, Kathleen (1990)”Fraternities of Fear: Gang Rape, Male Bonding, and the Silencing of Women.” Ms., 1(2) 52-56
(2) Rennison, Callie M. Criminal Victimization 1999: Changes 1998-00 with Trends 1993-99. Bureau of Justice Statistics, U.S. Department of Justice, August 2000.
(3) Sexual Assault on Campus NIJ http://www.ncjrs.gov/pdffiles1/nij/205521.pdf
(4) Sexual Assault on Campus NIJ

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From aNew York Times article: “PHNOM PENH, Cambodia, Oct. 25 — He had a job to do, and he did it supremely well, under threat of death, within earshot of screams of torture: methodically photograph Khmer Rouge prisoners and producing a haunting collection of mug shots that has become the visual symbol of Cambodia’s mass killings….”

During the rule of the Khmer Rouge, Nhem En was tasked to photograph every inmate entering Toul Sleng, a prison and interrogation center in an appropriated school. The facility was run by Kaing Geuk Eav, who went by Duch or Douch, and who is awaiting a trial for crimes against humanity. Duch has implicated Pol Pot’s right hand man, Nuon Chea, as having given the orders which meant the death of somewhere around 14,000 people.

Nhem En’s portraits are a testimonial to the record keeping of the Khmer Rouge and an memorial to their victims. More of Nhem En’s work at the Toul Sleng website.

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So KOMO TV offered a 15 second Public Service Announcement on their show “Northwest Afternoon” if the FEAR Project brought in some people for their audience. 15, in fact, one per second. So we did. If I can pull our PSA out of the DVD of the show I will post it here; our new board member Scott Leist (left: tall guy, no hat) did and excellent job of reading the teleprompter.

I don’t think anyone from our group actually watches the show, nor were we really up on the topics they wanted to discuss but Dan (above: far right in blue) got to ask the extreme home makeover guy about building green and Rebecca (above: second from right) had TWO questions she got to ask. The audience coordinator goes over all of this prior to taping of the show, giving you a legal-sized paper with bold felt pen summarizing your question. (at right: Scott in blue; Kaiti in pink, our volunteer coordinator; Kasi in the center, a new board member; Jenna in tan….)

Thanks to all who made it to the taping for FEAR Project’s PSA and for warming up to the idea of being a superficially interactive audience; for some reason you just can’t really get that deep on a show like this. Special thanks to Scott Chytil who took a few snaps for us.

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VIEW MULTIMEDIA ON TREE SITTERS
–with the voices of “Siege,” a tree-sitter, and Nik, whose role as ground support has helped people like Siege.

Nik’s directions took me to an Oakland neighborhood where, he said, there was bi-weekly semiautomatic weapon fire and “slum-bird” helicopters buzzing low overhead; I saw the birds, heard the bumping bass, and the guys hanging at the check-cashing corner store. (at right: the kitchen)

I was in the Bay Area to photograph tree sitters on the University of Berkley campus, a group whose actions Nik supports and with whom he could provide introductions.

The front of the house was boarded up but around back, more resembling the chaos of the natural world than anything else, were a few shacks, an outdoor kitchen, and wood-chip paths connecting it all. They were dismantling the squat as the property was going to be developed but what previously existed were a geodesic dome, a straw bale house, large organic gardens, and his own dwelling made of pallets, reclaimed building material, and insulated with futon ticking. (at left: outdoor shower)

Nik, an old friend from university, is immersed in the world of sustainable living and development; not with a holier-than-thou eco-militance, but through an incredible knack of peaceful engagement, intelligence, and skill. His mindset is natural coexistence. Think organics, gray water reclamation, alternative energy (he runs an old Mercedes on biodiesel), and, well, green living. He’s pretty good at it.

My rental car, the smallest Thrifty had on the lot, was a bright red new-model Mustang. For someone who drives a beater Subaru wagon and is going to visit with eco-protesters and hippies, I felt pretty embarrassed by my ride. Especially when pulling up for some dumpster diving where Nik ran into a friend who was also checking out the goods. We harvested three grocery bags full before finding our way onto campus; some good eats for the people in the trees. (at right: the mustang)

I slowly wound my way through the trees on tyrolean traverses employing basic climbing safety techniques. The tree-sitters were meeting out at the “Fuck You” tree, the one connection to the ground outside a recently erected chain link fence intended to protect the tree-sitters from football fans but also acting to isolate them from their supporters. Security officers watched 24/7 and floodlights lit the ground at night. The tree-sitters were discussing logistics with their ground supporters–like Nik–and, ironically, about what “consent” means in a sexual context. (at left: dumpster diving)

Nik and I, while catching up over lunch, had had this very discussion because of the work I’ve been doing with sexual violence. Drifting through the trees I heard “No means saying I don’t like that, no means not kissing back, no means being drunk, no means no response, you don’t have to hear someone say ‘No’ for it to mean no.” It was a pleasant distraction as I was sweating in the balmy evening, guide-less and negotiating unknown traverses and platforms 60 feet off the ground in the growing darkness. I was hauling my camera gear, extra clothing, and enough food and water for two nights. I didn’t want to be a burden on the tree-sitters’ resources. (at right: Nik at home)

Across to “lower Caruna,” hand-over-hand to its upper platform, from there another traverse to “yea-mama” and a crossroads. To the right was “okey-doke” where most of the hippies hung out all day, to the left was “lower deodar,” a tall conifer that served as another junction for what I was coming to see as the ultimate game of hot-lava. When I finally arrived at lower doedar it was dark; I decided, partly for safety, that I would hang my gear and stay the night there. Later that evening “Burlap,” one of the tree sitters, would come through and take me to the Crow’s Nest, a small platform wobbling on the very tip of “upper deodar” and the highest point in the network. It was a bit gripping with all the free-solo climbing to get there in the dark (no ropes or safety), but once there we relaxed in the cooling night gazing toward the lights of San Francisco and listening to the fraternity parties below. (at left: a tourist attraction)

I rose early to find a snoring tree sitter hanging between two branches, and waited as the morning fog lifted. At 10:00 “Busstop” came over from Okey-Doke to make pancakes; I left to make images and at 1:30 Berkley students staged a protest. They jumped the fence to deliver supplies and clean the grounds. The police let those who wanted to to leave and arrested the remainder, citing and releasing all but one. I thought they did a great job considering all the heckling they received but had to remind myself this was a college campus; I know in the past protesting has been different, but this seemed like a mid-level course in civil disobedience with the police captain serving as guest lecturer. The protesters left by 5:00–which was about the time the pancakes Busstop started that morning were finished and consumed. (at right: kristin in the trees during the protest/arrests)

While I’m sure you find a
ll of this interesting, I bet what you’re really wondering is the all important question: how do you go to the bathroom? Simply put, in a sealable five-gallon bucket. Excrement and paper mix with a bulking agent like dirt, urine goes in rancid bottles dangling from the platforms; women use funnels. Before the fence these items were simply lowered from the platforms to the ground crew. Now they need to traverse all the lines I laboriously crossed before they can be disposed of. Scary. Especially since I found out you can’t rely on the bucket handle; I nearly dropped the ultimate stink bomb onto the pavement below. (at left: “Siege” making a traverse)

VIEW MULTIMEDIA ON TREE SITTERS

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I applied for and was accepted into the Kent City Summer Arts program which may lead to the purchase of this work for the city art collection. Which would be cool. I could stand to have my work being purchased.

The theme was environmental and they chose three of my images as part of the display. This is what they have to say:

Summer Art Exhibit Opening Gala on Wednesday, July 11 from 5:30 – 8:00 PM at the Centennial Center Gallery, 400 W Gowe Street in Kent.

It’s a fun party! Your $10 admission benefits arts and culture at Kent Cornucopia Days. Enjoy hors d’oevres, beverages, dessert and no-host bar / Listen to live gypsy jazz / Meet the artists / Purchase original artwork / Receive a festival poster signed by artist Susanne Kelly!

This year’s exhibit has an environmental theme, to celebrate the 25th Anniversary of the Herbert Bayer Earthworks at Mill Creek Canyon. In addition to viewing the exhibit, you can adopt a “personal landscape” from artist Vaughn Bell + sew a sandbag for Brice Maryman’s “Chromatic Levee.” Both projects are part of 4Culture’s Site-Specific Performance Network. Something new, something fun!

Please join us! All ages welcome! Questions? Email csiegert(at)ci.kent.wa.us or visit www.KentArts.org

EDITOR’S NOTE: (as in, me) This event was cool AND the city bought one of my framed prints (an image from my Landfill Methane story) and the city ALSO offered a two-month solo exhibition. Cool!

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