"To discover to the world something which deeply concerns it, and of which it was previously ignorant; to prove to it that it had been mistaken on some vital point of temporal or spiritual interest, is as important a service as a human being can render to his fellow creatures..." John Stuart Mill, "On Liberty"
Wednesday, February 18, 2015
Lynsey Addario: A Photographer's Life of Love and War
There is a principle in physics known as the uncertainty principle. the idea simplified is that it’s impossible to observe or measure certain phenomenon without having an impact on that which is being observed or measured.
In many ways we might look for the same impacts among those that give us the images of war and disaster. What do these images tell us about sufferings of people in faraway places? Images that do more than report, that can inspire dissent, foster violence, or create sympathy or apathy. They often tell us about the nature of war and the obligations of conscience. Sometimes they even make us think or feel about a reality far beyond what any picture can convey?
Few understand this better than Lynsey Addario. One of the greatest photo journalists of our time, her work has appeared regularly in the New York Times. She is recipient of a MacArthur Genius Grant and the Pulitzer Prize. Her memoir is It's What I Do: A Photographer's Life of Love and War
My conversation with Lynsey Addario: