An Introduction by David Friend
The three photographers represented here -- Jerome Liebling, Chester Michalik, and Frank Ward -- are connected in at least three important ways.
First, they possess the compassion, perspective, and wisdom to have thought to focus their lenses for extended periods on the human toll of war and conflict.
Second, they have brought to this daunting theme a contemplative impulse -- the world view of the thinking man and woman -- due, in part, to their long affiliations with institutions of higher learning, including colleges such as Amherst, Hampshire, Holyoke Community, and Smith.
Finally, they hail from the Pioneer Valley in Massachusetts, an enlightened region when it comes to sounding the alarm in times of national conflict, a place that seems to breed progressive, clear-eyed citizens who, since the days of the American Revolution, up through the Vietnam War and the current-day conflict in Iraq, have been willing to ask the hard, deep questions.
Here, then, is their group effort, "Conflicts." Regard what their eyes have seen: the sacrifice and sorrow, the humanity and even the poetry amid the horror.
And take heed, for their imagery speaks volumes.
David Friend, an editor at
Vanity Fair and former director of photography of
LIFE magazine, is the author of
Watching the World Change: The Stories Behind the Images of 9/11.
Jerome Liebling
The pictures included in Conflicts cover a wide range of subjects and locations. Each series offers insight into the effects of human conflict.
Israel / Palestinian Photographs
Liebling photographed in Israel and the West Bank in the 1980s. His photographs (in color) reflect the ordinary life circumstances of a tense society. The first Palestinian Intifada occurred in the late 1980s. The streets and cobblestone steps became strife ridden as the populace watched, participated, or fell victim to the violence. The black and white photographs are from the Associated Press. Lieblings diptychs combine his work with these newspaper photographs.
Lodz, Poland
During World War II the Nazis created the Lodz Ghetto (1940-1944). Jews from Poland were transported to Lodz to work in slave factories for the Nazis. If they survived the rigors of life in the Ghetto, they would later be transported to concentration camps in Poland as part of the Final Solution."
In 1987 Liebling visited Lodz and photographed the Jewish survivors of the former Ghetto. (Lieblings original color photographs are paired with archival Nazi images.
Soldiers Home, Holyoke, MA, USA
Veterans, beyond the pomp and circumstance of their youth, receive housing and treatment in state sponsored facilities.
The South Bronx, New York City 1977
The collapse of civic functions, mixed with inflated insurance and realty values, caused the destruction of large portions of The Bronx. Charlotte Street became so synonymous with this destruction that Walter Mondale and Ronald Reagan campaigned at this corner in the presidential election
of 1980.
Jerome Liebling has a career as a photographer, filmmaker and teacher that spans over sixty years. Liebling is currently professor emeritus of Hampshire College, and lives in Amherst, Massachusetts.
Chester Michalik
Chester Michaliks pictures, made at air force bases in Westover and Westfield, Massachusetts, take a satirical look at military air shows. His photographs investigate the propaganda aspects of these events. He illustrates the erotic attraction of weapons: how young people, especially boys, handle the armaments and how people of all ages touch the planes, bombs and rockets.
Chester Michalik is Professor Emeritus of Art at Smith College. His work has been exhibited and collected by museums across the United States. He lives in Holyoke, Massachusetts.
Frank Ward
Frank Wards series of pictures from Bosnia, Kosovo, Croatia and Serbia were originally created with the support of the Friends of Bosnia/Center for Balkan Development and the Packard Foundation. These newly configured triptychs, titled War Zones, serve as a visual manifesto of militarism, nationalism, and their aftermath.
Frank Ward has photographed cultures in transition and societies in conflict around the world for over thirty years. He is assistant professor of art at Holyoke Community College and lives in Ashfield, Massachusetts.
