Look Up!

Just a quick blog this week.  A series of images I did for a client that I really enjoy.  These are images of buildings "looking up".  We all tend to get very caught up in our lives and forget to enjoy the beautiful things around us.  Take some time this week to stop looking at your phone, checking out what your latest emails and texts say or whatever else we all tend to spend time staring at our phones for; instead look up and enjoy the beautiful things around you.  Be it the people you pass on the street or that building you pass every day and never notice that really cool architecture it has. 

All images copyright Steven Lessick 2010

Human Fire

"Human Fire" is a body of work that I have developed for the Caton Merchant Gallery in Manassas, VA that focuses on the human side of firefighting.  The show has transformed and developed over the last 8 months into a magnificent body of work that focuses on the family life of the fire and rescue personnel that keep us all safe every day.  The images in the series capture the trials and tribulations brought into the family body by the type of work these people perform; from long hours away leaving their spouse or significant other to deal with the daily running of the household, to the strain that comes from a blue collared job that doesn't always pay the bills and allow families to enjoy the type of lifestyle they had once wished for.  Children are always affected by this style of work and are represented rightfully as part of the images in the series.  The show works through a juxtaposition of wanting what one cant have, but once obtaining these dreams wanting what you once had but are not willing to give up.  Wishing for the high life of money, possessions, free time, and more but always wanting the chaos, fight and struggle that comes with the line of work that all these individuals love doing.

Below are two images from the show for you to all enjoy.  The reception for the show is on February 12th 6-8p.  I hope to see everyone there to enjoy these images and in doing so show support for the men and women that do this difficult job every day.

Red Diamonds

A Series of images I took in Bo, Sierra Leone that outline the ongoing results of the devastating civil war in which tens of thousands died and more than 2 million people (well over one-third of the population) were displaced because of the 11-year conflict. This series shows the human rehabilitation effort outlining the need for artificial limbs for those who succumbed to the "your future is in your hands" campaign in which the rebels removed the limbs of the population so they could not vote for the government during elections.  Legs were also amputated by the rebel force so that the general population could not fight back. These images show the creation of these limbs "by hand" in a center at Mercy Hospital and a government sponsored village for those who were effected by the devastating campaign.

(all images are copyright Steven Lessick 2010) Please obtain permission for reproduction by contacting at contact@stevenlessick.com