The death of photographer and filmmaker Tim Hetherington in Misrata, Libya, on Wednesday was a blow to New York's media and photography circles. The artist was killed during a battle between rebel and government forces.
Another New York-based photographer, Chris Hondros, who was working for Getty Images, was gravely wounded during the battle and died several hours after Mr. Hetherington. In a statement, a Getty spokeswoman said: "Chris never shied away from the front line having covered the world's major conflicts throughout his distinguished career and his work in Libya was no exception. He will be sorely missed."
The Oscar-nominated co-director of the 2010 film "Restrepo" was killed Wednesday in Libya amid a battle between rebel and government forces. Christopher Farley has more on Tim Hetherington and his work.
Mr. Hetherington, who was born in Liverpool, England, in 1970, and lived in Brooklyn, was a contributing editor at Vanity Fair, which in 2007 sent him and writer Sebastian Junger to document a year with an American battalion in Afghanistan's Korengal. Valley. That assignment led to the duo's documentary "Restrepo," which earned an Oscar nomination this year.
"I think a viewer of Tim's photos might feel that he was really in it with the soldiers—not just observing," said Vanity Fair's photography director, Susan Smith, via email. "That sort of commitment combined with the artistry he brought to the end photograph was a powerful mix."
Mr. Hetherington covered West Africa for more than a decade, and Brooklyn's Umbrage Editions published a collection of his work from Liberia in "Long Story Bit by Bit: Liberia Retold." Umbrage publisher Nan Richardson said selecting photographs from years of coverage was not difficult because the photographer had a clear vision of his message: "He wanted Western audiences to understand that Liberia was not about tribal war or a hopelessly muddied situation. He wanted to point fingers at who he thought shared the moral responsibility. And point out people who could help."
More
Photographers Killed in Battle
On a personal note, she added: "The first time I met him, he was every inch the soldier, with a buzz cut and army fatigues—then outcomes the Oxbridge accent and his incredible articulation."
After his time in Afghanistan, Mr. Hetherington created "Infidel," a book published by Chris Boot, who is now the executive director of the Aperture Foundation, based on 27th Street. "What interested me in working with him was the degree to which he identified with the people he photographed," Mr. Boot said. "He made something that had much more depth than you normally associate with that sort of hard-nosed journalism."
After spending so much time with the soldiers, the bonds created through war did not fade. "He kept in touch with all of the guys that he photographed. They became a community of a kind," said the publisher. "Tim used the experience of being with these guys to tell their story from their point of view."
tim hetherington, chris hondros, umbrage editions, getty images, nan richardson, western audiences, sebastian junger, oscar nomination, liverpool england, vanity fair, tribal war, s media, government forces, restrepo, moral responsibility, bit by bit, clear vision, susan smith, co director, west africa
No comments:
Post a Comment