The fluorescently lit cafeteria of Public School 55 in the South Bronx sparked to life as kindergarteners and first-graders file inside. Lunch ladies shush the students as they buzz with excitement: lunchtime today is special.

Although the kids’ lunch trays have the usual items of chicken and milk, even cookies for dessert, the star of the show is the side: a spinach and kale salad with cherry tomatoes and shallots, tossed in an oregano vinaigrette dressing.

Most students receive their cups of salad with a smile. Others push it away with a crinkled nose.

“There are tomatoes,” said one brown-haired boy in disgust.

Another first grader is on her third serving, the vinaigrette still slick on her full face.

“It’s good,” she said. “It’s really yummy.”

The gourmet option wasn’t shipped in or catered by a guest chef. It was grown by the students themselves. While gardening in schools is nothing new, at PS 55 students are farming 37 varieties of fruits and vegetables in the most unlikely of places.

The K-5 school sits in the middle of the South Bronx housing projects in the unhealthiest county in New York state. The concept of fresh and natural greens meeting the mouths of developing children was a relatively foreign one, but the Green Bronx Machine now has students planting, cooking and eating produce all within the same city block.

Green Bronx Machine is a nonprofit that has partnered with the South Bronx school to repurpose an unused fourth-floor library, in a 100-year-old building, into a green sanctuary called the National Health and Wellness Center, which opened in January 2016.

The nonprofit is the brainchild of Stephen Ritz, the founder of Green Bronx Machine and self proclaimed CEO or “Chief Eternal Optimist of Bronx County.” The South Bronx is the poorest congressional district in the country, but where most see poverty, Ritz sees opportunity.

There are also outdoor gardens at PS 55, which sit behind a chainlink fence in the shadows of the towering brick projects. PS 55 is a zone school, so the students who attend it live in the South Bronx. The area has an abundance of unhealthy options and few fresh ones, said Ritz, who calls the cheap, corner store snacks a “MESS”.

“MESS is what I call Manufactured Edible Single-serve Substances,” said Ritz. “This is a very food challenged community. I mean you’re going to see a lot of very heavy kids walk around this community.”

Green Bronx Machine Executive Director Stephen Ritz wears his famous cheese hat and bowtie in front of a painting of himself at Public School 55. If students are lucky, they may be rewarded for good behavior by getting to wear the hat and be “the big cheese.” By Elizabeth Arakelian

One in four children in Bronx public schools is obese, according to the New York City Department of Health. But the bright red doors at PS 55, and the garden beds that flank them, have become a welcoming sign for students. Behind them there will be hands-on learning and soil-stained clothes. Students that enter the school won’t just go to class, but they will also learn that they have the power to decide what goes on their plate.

“We find that when kids do cooking or grow vegetables and learn about the food on their own terms, that they’re much more likely to eat it,” said Bill Yosses, former White House Executive Pastry Chef and Green Bronx Machine partner. “ They’re learning this about themselves. They own it.”

Former White House Executive Pastry Chef Bill Yosses attends the harvest lunch at Public School 55 in the South Bronx to chat with students about healthy food. By Elizabeth Arakelian

What started as an afterschool program in the Bronx in 2006 has since blossomed into an international movement with Green Bronx Machine chapters opening across America in Florida, Washington, DC, California, Vermont and Missouri, said Ritz. The organization is also partnering with 20 schools in Canada and Ritz has scouted opportunities in Mexico and Dubai, as well.

Green Bronx Machine has gained international attention and Ritz has taken students to be honored at the White House and featured in TED Talks. His work has led him to meet Pope Francis, present in the United Arab Emirates and he was a 2015 finalist for the Global Teacher Prize.

While Ritz has been successful in drawing attention to the needs of the South Bronx, for the past year and a half he has remained rooted at PS 55. It is here Ritz fosters growth in the students and their gardens. The indoor vertical farming towers in the National Health and Wellness Center burst with kale, chard and other lettuce varieties year-round. Soon, students will plant fruits and vegetables in the outdoor garden boxes. During harvest, they take home pounds of vegetables each week.

Vertical towers that recirculate water allow students at Public School 55 in the South Bronx to grow fresh produce year-round. By Elizabeth Arakelian

But farming at PS 55 is more than a fun activity — it’s actually school work. The Green Bronx Machine curriculum is aligned to Common Core educational standards, so the students are learning age appropriate skills in a hands-on way.

“It’s fractions, it’s decimals, it’s ratios, it’s proportions. It’s the art and science of growing vegetables aligned to content area instruction that allows everybody to benefit instead of just being a fun place where they come and cook and get their hands dirty,” Ritz said.

Plus, the students take on leadership roles.

“I mean I have plant police, leaf monitors, PH patrol, everything that you see here is kid maintained,” said Ritz, gesturing to the vertical farms.

The fourth-floor also boasts a mobile cooking station, equipment to record cooking demonstrations, and bicycles where kids can pedal to generate energy to charge their phones, or see how long they have to ride to burn off a soda.

Ritz even implements a reading to plants program where students sit by the vertical towers and read to the leafy greens. At lunch, Ritz swaps the plants out for bigger, more developed plants and tells the students “‘You did such a good job! Look at what you’ve done!’ So the kids really feel great and they want to perform,” Ritz said.

While the real benefit is students’ appetite for healthy and fresh produce, standardized test scores are also on the uptick and attendance has increased to 97 percent, according to Ritz.
Since its inception the Green Bronx Machine has also linked up 2,200 graduated students with jobs at places like Whole Foods and Fresh Direct.

When students aren’t learning in the National Health and Wellness Center, it is used for adult workforce development. Students and their families visit and tend to the garden throughout the year, as well.

“You literally see parents and community members shopping there for groceries,” said Ritz of the outside gardens which remain open 24/7 in the summer.

While the ultimate goal of the Green Bronx Machine is to move students up the food chain, the nonprofit is also shaping students’ self-esteem.

Fifth-grader Zuhaiti Arias said she likes being acknowledged for her hard work with the school’s gardening. “People are going to get to know me better and see who I really am,” she said.

At PS 55 choosing swiss chard over chips may be a small success, but it could lead to something greater, which students like Arias are reminded of each time they enter the National Health and Wellness Center and see the phrase “Si Se Puede” painted on the wall.

“That means ‘Yes we can’,”explained Arias. “ It means that we can do anything in the world if we believe in ourselves and do hard work.”

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The new hot seller on the Internet marketplace is breast milk.

Advertisements regularly pop up on Craigslist and the website OnlytheBreast.com where anonymous moms sell their milk to the highest bidder, often proving the quality of their milk by describing their eating and exercise habits. Some even post photos of their babies as proof.

“Hi! I am a first-time mom to a handsome and healthy 4-month old boy,” wrote one Jackson Heights, Queens mom on recent Craigslist posting “I am drug-free, a non-smoker and still taking my prenatal vitamins. I eat a well-balanced diet and regularly go to the gym to maintain a healthy lifestyle. I am willing to sell my liquid gold to anyone.”

The mom is selling her breast milk for “$2 per ounce. Cash only.” and it’s a convenient way for overproducing moms to make money. But, it’s can be dangerous for the buyer according to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) which publicized warnings on its website against purchasing milk online.

“When human milk is obtained directly from individuals or through the internet, the donor is unlikely to have been adequately screened for infection disease of contamination risk,” the FDA writes.

If you’re going to buy milk, purchase it from a milk bank the FDA states, which New Yorkers will soon be able to due with the state’s first milk bank slated to open on Mother’s Day.

The New York Milk Bank is accredited by the Human Milk Bank of North America and is licensed by the New York State Department of Health. There are 21 milk banks in the United States and their function namely is to supply hospitals with breast milk for premature infants. But, mothers can buy milk directly from the milk bank with a prescription from their doctor.

“Mothers who give birth prematurely tend not to have enough milk so this can be a good option for them,” said Julie Bouchet-Horwitz, nurse practitioner and executive director for New York Milk Bank.

But, not all people seeking breast milk have just given birth. Others include parents of adopted children and cancer patients, as the milk has thought to have a necrotizing effect.

The breast milk that fuels the New York Milk Bank is donated by local mothers and the bank has established nine milk depot locations, or drop off sites, where screened mothers can bring their milk. The depots are operated by individuals in the industry, like physicians’ offices and a breastfeeding supply store, who then store the milk in a freezer before shipping it to the milk bank in Ardsley-on-Hudson. But, before mothers can donate their milk they’re first screened. Donating moms also need a letter from their physician and their baby’s doctor. Once approved, the donating moms are tested and prenatal records are examined to ensure the milk is safe.

“Then we accept her as a donor and we ask for a minimum of 150 ounces, but many women do much more than that,” said Bouchet-Horwitz.

The price for breast milk from the New York Milk Bank can be triple the price per ounce of what is offered online, but with the hefty price tag comes peace of mind said Bouchet-Horwitz.

“We know our milk is safe and that’s why we charge $4.50 an ounce,” said Bouchet-Horwitz, noting that the price covers testing the donors, staff, and equipment needs.

The milk bank’s success is dependent upon new mothers, like Katie McDermott, who are willing to donate their excess breast milk to help another family out.

“If you are unable to [breastfeed] and if somebody was able to give that gift, I think it’s just wonderful to know that another mummy out there is thinking ‘I want to keep your baby as safe as my baby,” said McDermott.

Dr. Perri Klass on the importance of breast feeding

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The Brownsville, Brooklyn of David Alexander’s youth was a vibrant one. He remembers movie theaters every few blocks and the Belmont Avenue open air market teeming with people eager to buy their groceries.

Alexander said those were glory days in his eyes, when there was “vigor” in the Brownsville community that has since escaped the neighborhood.

“Everything else has been changed, closed down, and nothing has been put there to bring back that vibrancy that was once there,” said Alexander, 64, of the collapse of Belmont Avenue. “It really was a thriving community until it just imploded.”

As a resident of Brownsville for 53 years, Alexander has seen Brownsville evolve over the years and he can name several things he believes contributed to what he calls the community’s “demise.” But perhaps was most crystallizes life in Brownsville today is it’s life expectancy rate.

Seventy-four is the average age that residents of Brownsville live to be and it is the lowest rate of life expectancy in New York City according to the City’s Health Department. For comparison, residents of the Financial District live on average to be 85 years old — that’s 11 more years. Brownsville also sets the record of the highest rate of premature deaths, or deaths before 65, and the infant mortality rate is the fourth highest in New York City.

It is not exactly clear, however, why residents of Brownsville are passing away so much earlier than their fellow New Yorkers. Brownsville is certainly grittier than its neighbors — it is the poorest neighborhood in Brooklyn with 37 percent of residents living below the federal poverty line — but the leading causes of death in Brownsville are the exact same as other, more affluent areas of New York City: heart disease and cancer.

“I was surprised, but I was also happy because you can prevent heart disease,” said Eva Gordon, a Brooklyn native who now serves as a coordinator for the Community Partnership Program, a nonprofit that serves to connect local residents with life improving resources.

Gordon was surprised to learn that crime related deaths were not more common and homicide was the sixth leading cause of death in Brownsville, to her relief.

“Homicide is hard because there is no name on the bullet,” said Gordon.

Gordon grew up in the communities adjacent to Brownsville, namely the Flatbush and Crown Heights neighborhoods, and has seen first hand the inner workings of life in Brownsville as a caseworker in previous years.

“I’ve been going to Brownsville all of my life. It’s not a foreign neighborhood to me,” said Gordon, noting that the community has had a bad reputation for a long time. “It kind of has that reputation that ‘nothing good ever comes from Brownsville’.”

Even amongst Brooklynites, “Brownsville has had a negative connotation of being the murder capital of Brooklyn,” acknowledged Community Board 16’s District Manager Viola Greene-Walker.

Unlike other Brooklyn neighborhoods, Brownsville has yet to gentrify and in turn experience the revitalization that has made neighborhoods like Greenpoint trendy and pricey. Instead of the $5 lattes found at craft coffee shops in Williamsburg, Brownsville hosts 99 Cents stores and unhealthy, but cheap, food options.

“It’s more living out of cans and the produce that they do sell is not of quality so these are things that I have to fight to improve which would help for us to be more physically healthy than where we are,” said Alexander, who sits on a number of boards through the community district.

While access to healthy food is certainly an aspect that affects longevity, stress of daily life in Brownsville is another factor. Brownsville has the highest rate of public housing in America meaning financial stability is rare among residents.

“I think a lot of its unemployment. If you’re not able to help yourself financially, how is your stress level? How is your blood pressure? How do you provide for yourself?” said Gordon. “If you’re in public housing and not your own house, how does that affect your stress levels too?”

These stressors have contributed to an overall lower quality of life compared with other New York City neighborhoods said Green-Walker.

“I attribute that to access, or lack of access, to health care,” said Greene-Walker. “Often times residents have other factors such as… being uninsured or under-insured. Just different stresses in life living in the community that their health care might take a back seat to other issues that they’re faced with.”

One of the services that Gordon’s nonprofit offers is to connect individuals to life improving services, be that financial or health oriented, but convincing Brownsville residents to take advantage of these services is often difficult.

“The one thing I must say is that those who want to come out will come out, but you have to fight tooth and nail to get them to come out sometimes,” said Gordon.

Alexander is one Brownsville resident who does not need encouragement to get out and participate in life in Brownsville as he has made it his mission to return a glimmer of his glory days to the community.

“I had an opportunity to move out of Brownsville and I elected to remain to ensure that Brownsville gets back its vigor that it had when I was first here,” said Alexander.

One way he is doing that is by reaching out to the next generation. As the chairperson of the Brownsville Youth Committee Alexander hopes to provide current youth with the “more substantial” programs he enjoyed as a child.

“We had Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, — we don’t have that anymore,” he said. “We had different types of clubs. They weren’t gangs, they were clubs, where we would attend and pay due and go on trips and go on things like that and I’m trying to get that back.”

Alexander hopes that providing the youth more support may in turn lead to less crime and more involved adults, something that is lacking in the community.

“Right now the community is starting to pull itself back up. It’s a slow process but we’re starting to be more sustaining,” said Alexander. “We’re a work in progress is guess is best thing I could say.”

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Former track runner Arthur Warren Scullin posted up at the intersection of East 138th Street and Alexander Avenue in the South Bronx early Sunday afternoon to cheer on his sister in the New York City Marathon.

“It was always a family thing,” said Scullin of running, a Queens native who now resides in Nassau County. “I was a track runner. My brother was a track runner. [My sister] was a track runner in high school and my father was a track runner.”

As the marathon runners ran toward the 20 mile mark, church bells tolled and families with children in their Sunday best made their way through the crowds. The course runs right in front of the New York Police Department’s 40th Precinct where officers from several departments, including canine and counter terrorism, stood alongside cheering fans. Though traditionally a quieter part of New York City, those exiting the 3rd Avenue – 138 Street subway station were met with the sound of live jazz and cheering as loud as the bright green uniforms worn by volunteers passing out water and bananas to runners.

Like many onlookers, Scullin stood with his wife and son and brought signs: one for his sister, one for his cousin, and one for his wife’s coworker, all of whom were running in the marathon. In previous years Scullin has made his way to Brooklyn and the East Side and West Side to watch. This year, the South Bronx suited him since he works down the street and it provided a different perspective on the race.

“This is a unique point because this is where the runners start hitting the wall,” explained Scullin as a group of male runners jogged past. “The wall is after 18 miles the body starts to break down. The training is not for the first eight miles, it’s for the last eight miles.”

The South Bronx is a difficult part of the marathon because a significant amount of time has elapsed for runners, but the end is not quite in sight yet.

The intersection of East 138 Street and Alexander Avenue in the South Bronx was busy with participants in the 2015 New York City Marathon who ran through on their way towards Central Park and the finish line. Photo by Elizabeth Arakelian

“This is a tough part because you’re far north and you mentally want to get to the Central Park and finish it up,” said Scullin. “The crowd keeps you going through here.”

Scullin is familiar with being part of that cheering crowd since he’s been attending the marathon for years.

“This was always a family tradition,” said Scullin of watching the marathon. “My father always did this. He was always into track because he called it the purest sport.”

Scullin’s father was one of the executive directors of the Catholic Youth Organization in the Brooklyn Dioceses where sports programs are administered and a race has been named after him. Scullin’s father perished in the World Trade Center in the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, but each year his love of running lives on in his children who see the New York City Marathon not only a family tradition, but an homage to their father.

“My sister dedicates this to him,” said Scullin.

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College students across New York will now have the opportunity to compete to earn $1 million for environmental efforts at their school Governor Andrew Cuomo  announced at New York University yesterday.

Cuomo spoke at the university’s Action on Climate forum, a panel discussion presented by NYU’s umbrella environmental organization Earth Matters NYU and Know Tomorrow, a student led campaign to demand action on climate change taking place on campuses nationwide. The event, planned during Know Tomorrow’s National Day of Action, was created with the goal of finding tangible means of addressing climate change, said Earth Matters President Emma Spett.

Cuomo’s announcement fulfilled that goal.

“Take the challenge,” Cuomo encouraged students at the discussion. “Show people what can be done. If you show them what can actually be done and that it is possible, you will then have the support you need to get it done.”

The governor’s clean energy competition will require students to compose a plan to increase energy efficiency, reduce carbon emissions, and increase renewables for their school. The three best proposals will receive $1 million each “granted gratis by the green bank of the state of New York” said Cuomo.

Technically, the money will be administered from the Renewable Energy Vision Campus Challenge, an initiative started by the governor to recognize and support the colleges and universities leading in the clean energy transformation.

There will be naysayers though, warned Cuomo, who has faced many himself by placing climate change as one of the major issues at the forefront of his incumbency. Fellow speaker and executive director of the Waterkeeper Alliance, a organization dedicated to clean waters worldwide, Marc Yaggi touted Cuomo’s investments in renewable energy and the headway he has made to combat climate change, such as banning fracking in New York state last year.

“Governor Cuomo… has gained a reputation of standing up to lobbyists and influence peddlers and being willing to put the common good above special interests,” said Yaggi. “Nowhere is this more evident than in his steadfast defense of our environment and natural resources.”

While success has been made from the viewpoint of supporters of climate change reform, the topic has posed a major threat to the livelihoods of many traditional power and utility companies. Cuomo also pointed out that while climate change is largely accepted by liberals, conservatives still consistently question its legitimacy.

“The conservatives like to say that the climate change is just a political blather, just something that Democrats use to motivate voters, really,” said Cuomo. “Well, then Pope Francis is running for office because he said last week climate change could threaten the very existence of the human species.”

Cuomo’s father and former governor Mario Cuomo had 11 federally declared emergencies in his 12 years in office.

“I’ve been governor in just over four years. I’ve already had nine,” said Cuomo.

While both Yaggi and Cuomo cited ways in which New York is leading the fight against climate change on a national scale, the general consensus at the Action on Climate forum is that there is still more work to be done.

NYU alumnus Priya Mulgaonkar waits for Governor Andrew Cuomo to take the stage at NYU’s Action on Climate forum on Photo by Elizabeth Arakelian

Priya Mulgaonkar, 22, is an NYU alumnus and campaign organizer with Environment New York, a citizen funded statewide advocacy group. During the panel discussion, she  and others waved a yellow sun made out of cardboard in the crowd that read “20% by 2025.” The advocacy group is pushing for more conservation.

“Right now we are urging Governor Cuomo to commit New York state to 20 percent solar energy by 2025 to basically make a strong statement for climate action and to allow for specific policies to flourish,” said Mulgaonkar.

One such policies include expanding the market for solar energy by removing subsidies from fossil fuel companies and giving funds to smaller solar businesses so that they can provide more energy at a lower cost to communities, business, and homeowners.

“I’m very much an active alumnus of NYU,” said Mulgaonkar. “As an organizer my job is to activate people who care about this issue, but don’t know how to make a difference on it. So, by something as small as holding up a cute little sun at a talk by the governor, we’re engaging in politics and we’re making a difference on climate which is what he is here to talk to us about.”

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It’s late morning on Wednesday and the Union Square Green Market is already bustling with people. Everything from fresh produce to goat cheese yogurt is available for purchase and vendors are already tending to crowds, even before the lunchtime rush ensues.

Elana Langer, can be spotted on the north side of the square among the throngs of shoppers, slightly flustered and hurriedly assembling her stand. She isn’t selling jams or cheese like her neighbors, though. She is an artist and today Union Square Green Market is her gallery.

Langer has posted up for her second consecutive Wednesday at green market to showcase her art installation, WhatILiveBy. The project is what Langer calls the first global brand that does not sell a product. Instead, Langer asks participants to purchase either a leather tag, iron-on patch, or sticker logo with the words “WhatILiveBy” on them to attach to a current possession. The aim of the campaign is to transform current possessions, like a handbag, into locations to affirm personal truths without contributing to the consumer culture that often promotes a false sense of value.

After participants select their WhatILiveBy logo which cost between .75 cents and $3, Langer asks them to enter her “selfie-booth” which is adjacent to her stand. Here participants have a moment to consider what it is they live by and then take a photo with their new tag as an act of affirmation. From there, they write what they live by on the photo which is posted for others to see and draw inspiration from.

“We don’t have moments to just drop into ourself. Like when do you take a moment when you’re shopping to just think is this the person I want to be? Is this what I want to do?” said Langer. “I think that that’s really important.”

WhatILiveBy logos hang next to photos of individuals who have participated in the art installation. Photo Credit: Elizabeth Arakelian

The installation is unique in that through the exchange of money individuals are still participating in consumer culture, but in a positive way that benefits their sense of self. The logos cost just enough to cover Langer’s costs.

“When an art project doesn’t connect with the world we’re in, we’re not doing each other a service,” said Langer, noting that if it were free people may take the affirmation less seriously. “This is a practice and an invitation to invest in yourself.”

Langer said she hopes her project will bring an element of thoughtfulness to people so that they can connect with their inner truth and true value. This was exactly what one market goer, Louise Howard, was looking for.

Howard, 52 of Midtown East, stopped by the market after her spin class where her instructor had said something that left Howard with an element of inspiration.

“She said its a magical thing when your heart, your mind, and your body all say yes,” said Howard. “I was thinking about that and when all three are in agreement and all three are out of agreement and how my life changes in those ways. So, it was really funny just to walk up and see those words “WhatILiveBy” because I was thinking about that.”

Howard said she lives by her heart in doing what is right.

Elizabeth Seldin, 30 of Astoria, made a more intentional trip to Langer’s installation, requesting that a coworker cover the phones so that she could run over to experience WhatILiveBy, something she had heard about through a mutual friend of the artist.

Elizabeth Seldin poses with her WhatILiveBy leather tag, a symbol of her commitment to finding value in herself. Seldin said she lives by creativity and love. Photo Credit: Elizabeth Arakelian

Regardless of what people’s guiding principles are, Langer said she hopes that her installation encourages participants to pause and identify with what they live by so that they find contentment beyond consumer culture.

“The idea is that what you’re already carrying is the most valuable thing, which is yourself,” said Langer.

Langer’s final pop-up installation at the Union Square Green Market will be next Wednesday, Sept. 30. Langer is one of several artists selected to showcase their work through the French Institute’s Cross the Line festival which is an international festival to celebrate provocative and interdisciplinary works that runs through Oct. 4.

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As an epicenter of trade and commerce, it is not uncommon to see shipping containers on the periphery of New York City. It is odd, however, to see several dozen of them used as a makeshift art gallery like the one currently arranged at Brooklyn Bridge Park.

United Photo Industries, a New York based art organization, is the impetus behind the maze-like structure of shipping containers and while the set up may appear haphazard at first glance, it is anything but that. It is Photoville, the largest annual photographic event in New York City.

Photoville challenges the public’s perception of art by organizing shipping containers to function as gallery spaces in which curated works by an array of photographers and photojournalists are displayed. As a free event that is open to the public, the untraditional space liberates the viewers from expectations often associated with museums and brick and mortar galleries.

“I live in the neighborhood so I’m familiar with the space here and there’s a lot of containers that are for industrial purposes,” said Ananda Khan, 33,a Photoville attendee yesterday. “It’s nice to see it fit in with the neighborhood and create a whole new ‘suspended from reality’ space.”

Khan’s fashion photographer friend, Adrianna Favero, brought her to Photoville to not only explore the images, but to get in tune with the political and social climate of photojournalism.

“All of these are things that you don’t think about in your regular life,” said Favero of the themed installations showcasing issues like police brutality and war,.

Outside of one of the many containers stood Taylor Gamble, a representative of the New York New Abolitionists ready to provide information to the public on the effects of human trafficking. The New York New Abolitionists is an awareness campaign spearheaded by the New York State Anti-Trafficking Coalition, which is comprised of roughly 150 organizations, dedicated to raising awareness of human trafficking issues.

“Most people don’t realize that it’s something that happens all around us even in our city,” said Gamble.

The Coalition hired a photographer to capture portraits of various survivors, politicians, and even celebrities that are standing up and taking steps to help those affected by human trafficking.

“This is a great way to get the general public to notice our thinking about it and it’s given us a good chance to have conversations with people who had never thought about the issue before,” said Gamble..

This year marks Photoville’s fourth annual event which runs for two consecutive weekends in mid-September. It has gained traction since its inception having spread among the photography community even drawing former visitors to exhibit their work, such as photojournalist Rita Leistner who made her way from Toronto, Canada.

Leistner’s shipping container showcased photographs that she took on a smartphone while embedded with U.S. Marines in Afghanistan in 2011. Leistner was part of an experimental project titled Basetrack, which was an initiative to cover the war in Afghanistan using solely social media and smartphones.

Photojournalist Rita Leistner pauses for a moment at Photoville outside of a shipping container that showcases the work she photographed entirely on her smart phone while embedded with U.S. Marines in Afghanistan in 2011. Photo by Elizabeth Arakelian

In an increasingly digital world critics have wondered about the future of photography’s role now that the masses have become self-appointed photographers by virtue of their phones. According to Leistner the advent of phone photography does not degrade photojournalism or photography as an industry, but rather  “raises the bar higher particularly in terms of how we understand photography and what it can evoke.”

Judging by the thousands of people filing in and out of the shipping containers at Photoville over the past two weekends, it is clear people are still interested in glancing up from their phones to enjoy the physical photographs before them.

“Photoville, as a physical space that contains both material object images and people, is the joining point of these things and the fact that more than 70,000 people came through last year… to me that is evidence that my optimism about the future of photography is justified,” said Leistner.

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