Come check out my exhibition of photography at the Step Gallery in Phoenix. This is the conclusion of my yearlong honors thesis project on the topic of abuse. I encourage you to visit the show and write your comments in the guest books. The reception is tomorrow (17th) from 6-8 pm. The address is 605 East Grant Street in Phoenix. Enjoy the show!
As I work towards photographing more individuals who have had experiences with abuse, my project has taken an interesting turn. Instead of just photographing these wonderful people one time, I visit them a second or third time. I bring them back the images that I photographed of them, and ask that they write on them, rip them up, or do whatever they would like with the images. Their responses are unique and I find them to be evoking and thought provoking. My project would be nothing without the active participation of my participants, and for that I owe them the utmost gratitude.
These images are some of the first experiments that one of my participants did to the images taken of her.
This is a dear friend that I met this semester. She has an incredible story, and it was an honor to photograph her. I am so thankful that my honors thesis has led me to such beautiful people, both inside and out.
Over the past several months, I have been working on a project that is near and dear to my heart. Now, it’s that time of year again to kick-start my project, to get motivated, and to make a difference within my community. I am photographing young men and women who have had experiences with abuse. Why am I doing this?
Great question. Let me start by saying why I am not doing this project. I am not photographing these unique people to exploit them. I am not doing this project to use them for my own selfish needs. I am not using these people to make good photographs. I am not doing this project to bring back bad memories for these people. Rather, let me tell you what I am doing. I am photographing these wonderful human beings because, since a very young age, I have had a keen intuition that allows me to instinctively know when a person has experienced abuse or is even currently experiencing it. My intuition allows me to know when people are in pain. I feel their pain, I see their pain, and I experience their pain with them. Many people would call this empathy. As a result of my empathy, I have an incredible desire to help others. Even more specifically, I want to help those who have had incredibly difficult lives…those who have been abused.
I truly believe that this project will provide an outlet for these people to express any suppressed emotions of their past, to help them forgive their perpetrator, and to help these wonderful individuals to be heard. With this in mind, I hope that my project succeeds with its goals and is able to positively impact our community.
Sometimes, I think we all just want to be heard, especially those of us with difficult pasts. I am here to listen and to help. If you know of anybody who may be interested in experiencing the power of photographic healing, please have them contact me at hschiavo@asu.edu. Bless you all!
I have wonderful news that I was recently accepted into the Step Gallery in Tempe for a Solo Exhibition of Photography in April. Mark your calenders for April 14-17th, and please come to my opening reception on the 17th from 6-8 pm. Thank you to everybody who made this opportunity a possibility. I could not have done it without the help of my amazing teachers, and the amazing men and women who participated in my ongoing project!
I recently found some of my silver gelatin prints from the beginning of last year, and I thought I would share.
Society: “Hey, Doc. Something has been going on with me. I am less social than usual, I keep having frequent nightmares, probably because I sleep most of the day, I find myself either without an appetite or so bored that I eat to keep myself busy, and…”
Doc: *cuts society off* “Sounds to me like you are depressed. Let’s put you on a medication.”
Society: “I guess I have been pretty depressed lately, but I don’t know how I feel about drugs. I have heard that it can really mess people up.”
Doc: “Look, society, you have a chemical imbalance in your brain. Without major help, you will be tackling this disease on your own. You simply cannot fix your problems by yourself. Medicine is your only option.”
Society: “Okay, Doc. You’re right! After all, you do know what is best for me. Your wisdom, in combination with the thirty-two minutes we have spent together in my lifetime, is reason enough for me to go on meds! Thanks, Doc. When do I start?”
Doc: “Anytime, society. It’s what I am here for. We’ll put you on 40 mg of Prozac twice per day. Start immediately and I’ll check up on you in one month. Good luck!”
Alright, alright, alright, let’s dissect what is happening here. First off, let me start by saying 40 mg of medication is a large enough dose to create an entirely new mood disorder (that’s not entirely true, but if you are put on a dose higher than 20 mg, which is already a large dose, your doctor is insane). Secondly, Prozac, one of the most common of anti-depressants, is a mood elevator. So, when you are in a fabulous mood you will be so high on life that you will never want to kill yourself again. Sounds great, right? Wrong! If you experience severe anxiety, and start taking an SSRI (like Prozac), your heightened level of mood capacity will not only increase your joy, but also your depression, anxiety, anger, and so on. Soon enough, you’ll be experiencing panic attacks like never before. Doc sounds real smart right about now, eh?
Alright, now to the real problem. Did you notice how Doc cut off Society to immediately prescribe this patient with medication? Well, the truth is that Doc does this to 50 percent of society on a daily basis. Fifty percent, that is 156.95 million people, are currently on an anti-depressant medication in the United States today. Wow, we must have the most horrible world for hundreds of millions of people to be that depressed! That’s one way of looking at it. Or maybe our authority figures, doctors, only listen about 3 seconds before they are convinced a person they just met “needs” medication to survive. Let me ask you this, do you really think 50 percent of our population needs to be on an anti-depressant? Do you really believe our world is that bad? Or perhaps do we live in a society where people forget to challenge the power of a Ph.D?
Society: “Okay, Haylee, what makes you think you know more than the good ol’ Doc?”
Well, I don’t. However, I do know that challenging his ever so powerful pressure to take medication is in my best interest. After all, a doctor cannot truly know anybody after a ten minute discussion. Sure, you may be depressed, but let’s look at all the variables. Do you exercise? No? Well, you should. Thirty minutes of cardiovascular exercise, three times per week, provides the same effects of an anti-depressant, but without the negative side-effects. I bet your doctor barely addressed that issue. What are your eating habits? Cereal for breakfast, sandwich for lunch, and ramen noodles for dinner? Oh, you are hypoglycemic? Wow, no wonder you are depressed. Low-blood sugar is directly linked with depression. Go get some protein in you and you’ll start to perk up in a matter of days! The worst thing a depressed, hypoglycemic person can eat is sugar. Just quit that habit right now. Also, water, water, water. Cannot get any more basic than that. I bet your doctor did not even ask about your diet. If they did, I bet they didn’t articulate to you that you aren’t really depressed, but rather just an emotional byproduct of the food you are eating.
So, what’s my point? In short, I don’t want you or anybody else to simply accept the prescription a doctor will dish out. I want everybody to think deeply about what solution fits them best and to question why. I want you to ask yourself, “Do I truly have mental disorder?” or are there other external influences that are making me feel this way? I don’t know about you, but I refuse to believe that fifty percent of our population has a “chemical imbalance” in their brains. That’s simply not the truth. I can believe, however, that doctors think medicine is the “best” way of “fixing” problems. I think we can all agree that medicine does not fix the problem, but rather it serves as a band-aid by masking the problem. Instead of putting band-aids on our boo-boos, let’s try addressing the issue head-on. Seek out therapy, especially behavioral-oriented therapy, proper exercise, the advice from a good friend, and proper diet. Most importantly, get out of the house. Go have some fun, and don’t let yourself stay in all day. Now, these are the first steps to recovery!
Continue to ask questions, to think things through, and to fight for your health in a constructive manner.
Society: “You know, Doc, I am going try something else.”
[These images were not photographed by me.]
I am currently involved in a BFA photography exhibition. The opening reception is on Tuesday from 6-8 pm at Gallery 100 (ASU Tempe Campus). Please go check it out and leave a comment in each of the artist’s guestbooks, including my own.
For more information:
“Bachelor of Fine Arts candidates Chris Bontemps-Dorr, Elite Henenson, Haleigh Klandrud, Bianca Montaño, Matthew Nicoll, and Haylee Schiavo are proud to present ‘Interim’, a photographic exhibition. In conclusion to their studies at Arizona State University, these talented artists assembled a collection of their finest artwork that is diverse, yet complimentary. Interim encompasses ideas about culture, societal issues and man’s influence on the land. Their work utilizes a variety of styles to demonstrate their acquired conceptual and technical skills.”
“I followed the link to your blog from your Facebook. I’m blown away by your talent in photography and your inspiring posts! Your “Nana’s Experience with Alzheimer’s” portfolio even made me tear up. I never cared too much about photography but you can really capture & evoke strong emotions; I’ve never seen that before.
I can’t wait until you’re a famous photographer for National Geographic or Life Magazine…”
Coping
Today, I received a much needed email about my honors thesis project. This person wrote,
“I don’t fit the demographic for your project but I wanted to email you anyway. Your project sounds profound and noble. It is a very interesting variation from the typical advocacy against abuse strategies. Photographs, after all, are worth a thousand words. Meaningful photography is worth a million words. Good luck!”
Sometimes we all just need a little bit of encouragement. This person’s positivity and kind words meant the world to me. It seems to me like they understand the true intentions behind my work.
hnsfineart 