American Photography AP37 Chosen Winner
It’s incredibly rewarding when your work gets recognized by your peers. This photo, from my series on street sellers in Ethiopia, is really close to my heart. So seeing it selected for AI-AP American Photography 37 gives me a lot of joy.
A little more about the project:
Accurate unemployment numbers are hard to come by for Ethiopia. Suffice it to say they are higher than everyone would like. I spent some time giving these elusive statistics some thought. How do you represent them visually? How do you do it in a dignified manner without simply showing a poor person in need? All across the country there are people selling clothing, toiletries, cleaning supplies, snacks, lightbulbs, kids toys and other knickknacks via foot or small roadside shops. It doesn’t stop there. At one corner you can get your fans repaired and the opposite corner sit down and get a strong cup of coffee. It is hard work. And the margins can be thin. Without a doubt, these people are hustling. All photos were shot on Kodak Portra 120. Each person gave their permission to be photographed and was paid for their time.