Workshop in Review

For me this workshop hasn't been about making my best work or greatly advancing my photo skills, but about learning to be a journalist.  Sure I've technically done photojournalism before with the Daily, and I've tried to imitate photojournalism during other photography projects or trips, but during this week I've learned about the persistence needed to be a good photojournalist.  The documentary art is as much about the story as it is the photos, and pushing till you get the story is essential.  Hunting down leads, calling people five or six times a day, and relentlessly going agency to agency, office to office all taught me what it takes to be a photojournalist besides beautiful photos, and often even how to get those beautiful themselves. 

This week has been a wonderful learning experience for me in that regard and has given me a new perspective of photojournalism.  This week has had its ups and its downs (an entire day without getting a photo, etc...), but it's been a blast along the way.

-Aalok Kanani

Arts Programs Still Alive in Dorchester

Spent the afternoon in Dorchester at the Murphy School and found myself experiencing first-hand the efforts of the Dorchester Community Center for the Visual Arts, whose mission is "to make exemplary visual arts education available to everyone in Dorchester". Vivienne Shalom, a teacher from the DotArt center, led an afterschool class called "Shakespeare is Alive and Well in Dorchester" with five energetic and expressive 3rd graders: Anthony, Jordan, Raianne, Terence and Celine. After the class, Vivienne noted that with budget cuts being made in schools across Massachusetts, DotArt's programs may be the only art classes some students will receive-if money even allows for that.

Vivienne shows Jordan (left) and Raianne (right) how to use paper mache.

Raianne, a precocious student who describes herself as "very girly" and an aspiring fashion designer, poses while taking a break from her paper mache figure.

A shot taken by Celine, Terence holds up the mask he is working on in the afterschool DotArt class.

Celine is excited to complete her paper mache figure, which will eventually become a puppet.

-Jessica Bal

Captain Paul "Sasquatch" Cohan

Fisherman and Musician, Captain Cohan sits at the bar for a drink on Sunday, January 12, 2009. Cohan has managed to stay in the fishing business through perseverance and creativity, as well the occasional music gig. [Erika Volchan O'Conor]

Cape Pond Ice

Scott Memhard stares out at the ocean from the top of Cape Pond Ice on Saturday, January 4, 2009. Cape Pond Ice was founded in 1848 to provide ice for the fresh fish industry. Memhard has steered the company towards diversifying its products in response to the diminishing size of the Gloucester fleet. [Erika O'Conor]

Mittens, Tea and Neighbourhood Politics

As I continued to spend time in Chinatown, I met more members of the community who suggested places to visit and meetings to attend in order to get a feel for the neighbourhood. Lisette, the director of the Chinatown Progressive Association, had mentioned that a resident's association would be meeting at the Josiah Quincy School cafeteria that evening. When I entered the brightly painted cafeteria, a number of elderly residents had already begun to congregate. As more people arrived, a few of the ladies distributed
cups of tea.

The meeting was led by May Lui, a community organizer at CPA and covered topics ranging from efforts to renew legislation providing for a bilingual ballot to the donation of mittens for the elderly residents. I was struck by the warmth of the interactions between the residence as well as the intensity of their debates, which confirmed Lissete's assertion that the elder members of the community were among the most active.

Many of the residents had immigrated in their youth and had formed strong friendships in the process of organizing the community. Although I was an obvious outsider, they welcomed me into their circle and insisted on offering me tea, cake and even a pair of mittens.

Intershell

Alex Lopez packs and weighs bags of clams at the old Intershell building in Gloucester on Wednesday, January 8. Lopez commutes daily from Lynn to Gloucester, where he has been working for five years. [Erika Volchan O'Conor]

The women at Intershell shuck clams on Wednesday, January 7, 2009. Intershell has the fastest clam shuckers in the nation.

Shepard Fairey

Until this week, during some email correspondence with the elusive street artist Pixnit, I hadn't been aware of the upcoming and highly-anticipated Shepard Fairey exhibit debuting the first week of February at the ICA. After reading about his sometimes controversial street art, I began gathering a diverse collection of viewpoints on his work. From the Graffiti NABBers Anne Swanson and Kathleen Alexander, who are very vocal about their opposition to tagging and illegal street art, the ICA's support of Shepard Fairey "elevates this type of thing to a level it should not be elevated to and just encourages taggers and vandals."


Others felt that Fairey's work is an interesting topic of discussion for the art world. I spoke with Ricardo Barretto of the UrbanArts Insitute at MassArt and we touched on topics of guerilla art and its place in contemporary artistic study. Though he does not necessarily support illegal artwork, Barretto recognizes the interesting discussion it can spur. I stopped in at an art gallery on Newbury street and spoke with Joshua Buckno about the ICA event. He felt that in a way, placing Fairey's work in a gallery destroyed the "guerilla" aspect of it and cheapened the pieces in some sense.

Discussions with graffiti artists themselves added another dimension to the debate. Caleb Neelon, who has tagged in the past but developed his work into a successful career and now does commisioned pieces, stressed that street artists have to gain the respect of the graffiti subculture, which isn't always easy. As I passed by examples of Fairey's work in Central Square (pictured) some angry scrawls seemed to reflect this disrespect for someone who many may view as a sold-out artist. "SHEPARD FAIREY IS A POSER," read one such note. Some in the graffiti community may not dismiss Fairey for the evolution of his work and its shift to legal space. "You can't blame someone for making a buck," said one.

-Jessica Bal

Russell Sherman's Lady Jane

Fisherman Russell Sherman stands in the cabin of his boat, the Lady Jane, on Wednesday, January 7, 2009. After graduating from Harvard, Sherman interned on a Gloucester fishing boat one summer in the 1970s and, despite constricting government regulations of the fishing industry, has not stopped since. [Erika Volchan O'Conor]

Sad Saxophone

Herman Johnson braves the cold exterior of Faneuil Hall on Tuesday, January 6th, 2009. Herman's tears rolled down his face not only from the chilling wind, but also from the effort it took to belt the Disney and jazz songs that could be heard for blocks around. [James B. Choca]

Harvard Strings

A violinist checks his bow Wednesday, January 7, 2009 on the inbound Harvard subway platform. The student busker was claiming a lot of attention in the underground with his classical serenades. [James B. Choca]

When You Can't Do Any Worse

My story is shifting in focus. I originally set out wanting to show the similarities and differences of the unemployment experiences of the wealthy and poor, but as I've researched and interviewed I've realized that there is a larger problem. When business executives are laid off they take middle management jobs, when office assistants are deemed nonessential they become waiters and waitresses, and when construction workers and other low-income citizens get fired they can find themselves begging on the streets. Every panhandler, beggar, or homeless person that I've spoken with this week has told me how hard it has gotten in the last few months to get by with donations from good Samaritans. Not only because of the universal economic strain felt by all resulting in less of an ability to give, but also because of an increasing large population on the streets.

My project is centered on Vinnie Panico, a retired volunteer social worker who offers his time to the homeless free of charge but still has to stand in line at food banks and stay up to date with free meals at shelters to get by. He is a truly inspiring figure. After spending his life working at the Massachusetts State House he went down Park St. to Saint Paul's Episcopalian Church to give his time to the needy, even though he's never had much to give. He told me his story when I spent the day with him, and also took me to the Paulist Center/food bank and showed me where he used to work.

Vinnie Panico, a volunteer social worker, stands outside of the Paulist Center Food Bank, feet from the Massachusetts State House where he worked all his life.  Panico lives retirement check to retirement check but still gives himself to helping those who are less fortunate than him.

Maria asks for money in Harvard Square early on the morning of January 8th.  She

receives unemployment insurance from the government but relies on panhandling to buy luxury items like cups of coffee.  

-Aalok Kanani

Jacob Silberberg and Jim MacMillan critique student work during the 2009 Boston Workshop.

Jim MacMillan works with students during an evening critique session.

Islam on the Streets

When I think Boston, I think Irish Catholics with a few Italians thrown into the mix. However, in studying the Muslim community in the Boston area during this workshop, I have found that they are certainly a population that is well represented and thoroughly visible (but then again, I have known where to look). 

Having studied Arabic for the past year and a half accompanied by a smattering of Quranic readings, I have developed a certain appreciation of Arab culture. Explaining this background to members of the Muslim community in Boston, I have found that there is an intense desire on their part to educate non-Muslims about Islam. Multiple times throughout the week I have been told that they believe that it is Allah who has led me to them for their information and assistance in understanding. 

The disconnect I have found is in that the Muslim community is open and more than willing to educate non-Muslims, whereas from all that I have seen this week, the non-Muslim community is not as forthcoming in this move toward mutual understanding.  Classes intended for both new Muslims and non-Muslims to learn about Islam - Islam 101, sponsored by the Muslim American Society (housed in the ISBCC) - are lacking any non-Muslim participants. 

In such a critical time of needing understanding throughout the world, I can only hope that all parties will be as open for discussion as I have found the Muslim community in Boston to be.

A muslim woman wearing a burqa gets off the T at Roxbury Crossing to go to the ISBCC on Tuesday, January 6, 2009. The ISBCC has been drawing worshippers from around Boston, altering the shape of Muslim congregations of Greater Boston.

- Meredith Klein

Finding a Way In

My first few days in Chinatown were frustrating, to say the least. A large proportion of the people I attempted to shoot on the street did not speak English and were extremely reluctant to talk to me or let me photograph them. As I became more familiar with the neighbourhood, I realized that it was split into two very different areas. The Eastern portion, adjacent to the financial district, is teeming with restaurants and shops, whereas the predominantly residential area by New England Medical Center is home to a surprisingly high number of community organizations. On Monday night, I found out about a ping pong club which met at the Chinese Consolidated Benevolent Association. Unlike the people I approached on the street, several members of the CCBA welcomed me and eagerly discussed their views on Chinatown, urban planning, education, music and other topecs.



I had a somewhat similar experience at the Chinatown Progressive Association, where I had scheduled an interview with Lisette Le. Lisette was initially slightly skeptical, warning me that she did not want to talk to me if I was planning to give a inaccurate, premediated impression of the neighbourhood. I told her that I had done quite a bit of background research and intended exactly the opposite - I wanted to expose misconceptions, hear the perspectives of residents and describe what the community. She seemed satisfied, if not slightly impressed, by my efforts to accurately portray Chinatown and agreed that it often seems to be a very introverted community for outsiders, but asserted that it happens because many residents are vulnerable, not because they are exclusive. Interestingly, Lisette's explanation was a pretty accurate representation of my own experiences - upon approaching people on the street, they were often guarded, but once I met a few people and showed them that I did not intend to take advantage of them, they were happy to open up to me.

- Alykhan Mohamed

Halfway There

With the mid-point of the workshop comes critical self-evaluation, more pressing concerns about time, and oftentimes a general sense of freaking out. Having good directions for our stories at this point, individual meeting with Jim have confirmed our achievements, the places where we need to improve, and what exactly we are missing in our visual narratives.

Having spent four consecutive days at Washington-Beech, I’ve spoken with residents and heard a variety of opinions regarding redevelopment. My meeting with a representative at the Boston Housing Authority was informative, but my difficulty breaking through the bureaucracy (and what I perceived as more than a touch of condescension) confirmed the frustration that many residents feel with “the system.” And speaking with the project’s Tenant Task Force demonstrated the assets of the community that may not be visible to the outside eye.

But thus far my lack of success in creating a real connection with someone has left me without a central character to focus on. While I have enough quotes and information to write a lengthy article, the gaping hole in my photographic essay increases my worry with only three days left. The human connection is what this story is about, but at this point I suppose I can only allow this to push me further.

A courtyard at Washington-Beech appears desolate despite the fact that residents have not yet been relocated from this section. In sharp contrast, the new designs feature townhouse units with individual entrances, private back yards, and a great deal of green space.

- Alison Coffey

NABBing Taggers

Bringing the graffiti issue firmly to the present, notorious tagger Danielle Bremner (tag name UTAH) appeared at Court on Tuesday morning. She has spread her name across walls from Europe to New York to the historic buildings of the Back Bay in Boston. Her case was postponed and Detective William Kelley of the Boston Police Department, along with Nancy O'Loughlin of the MBTA Police, will use the remaining time to collect more evidence.

Graffiti and historic architecture collide near the Old South Church in Copley Square.

In addition to meeting Detective Kelley and O'Loughlin at the Boston Municipal Courthouse, I also spoke extensively with Anne Swanson and Kathleen Alexander, co-chairs of the Graffiti NABBers (Neighborhood Association of the Back Bay). They were very vocal about their opposition to vandalism and have worked tirelessly for many years to eliminate it from the streets of the Back Bay neighborhood, spending 10-40 hours per week scrubbing tags from UTAH and others off buildings in the area.

Anne Swanson of the Graffiti NABBers, looks across the street to some graffiti and expresses her concern, in front of the Boston Municipal Courthouse after Bremner's appearance.

We met in the Boston Public Library and discussed their work with the NABBers. They mentioned that graffiti writers are often not aware of the extreme costs of their "form of entertainment". Swanson mentioned that during one case, she sat by the tagger himself completely by coincidence. He leaned over and asked "Are you the NABBer?" and then, instead of a confrontation, an apology followed. Perhaps with more education and awareness of the effects of graffiti on communities like the Back Bay, some vandals may change their minds about what they do with their free time.

Kathleen Alexander of the Graffiti NABBers counts off the reasons why graffiti in historic neighborhoods like the Back Bay is unacceptable. She described her anti-graffiti work alonside Anne Swanson in the Boston Public Library, an example of one of the priceless works of architecture that they strive to protect.

-Jessica Bal

Morgan sings accompaniment for his banjo in the Downtown Crossing station of the Boston T during the late afternoon. His energetic bluegrass music turned heads as he expressively sang about family and lost love. [James B. Choca]

More than a haircut

Derek puts the finishing touches on Stan at Finest Touch Barber Shop on Dorchester Ave. A barber's success depends on the strength of his regular customer base. In turn, loyal clients often follow their barber should he change shop.

- Erin Baldassari

Finest Touch

Fidel, 10, brushes the hair off his cousin. After school, Fidel finishes his homework before starting his shift at the barber shop, sweeping floors and clearing the counters.

- Erin Baldassari

A Hideaway Spot for Tags

Amy, a waitress at The Phoenix Landing in Central Square, stands in the closed-off alleyway next to the restaurant which is filled with tags. Restaurant owner Joe McCabe sees no problem with the graffiti near his establishment and in fact has met many of the writers who are responsible for the work. (Jessica Bal)

Fresh Fruit in the Financial District

Costas Katemis, a Greek immigrant, sells fruit in Boston's Financial District.  He does not have a green card so he has to work 16 hour days to get by.

-Aalok Kanani

"For Progress We Must Have Sacrifice"

A stairwell in Washington-Beech shows its need for redevelopment. While residents look forward to improvements in infrastructure, relocation remains a cause for concern. But Meena Carr, President of the Washington-Beech Tenant Task Force, explains that progress cannot come without sacrifice.

Meena Carr, President of the Washington-Beech Tenant Task Force, traces the layout of the planned development. After demolition and reconstruction, which will begin this year, Washington-Beech will have 342 on and off-site affordable rental and for-purchase housing units. 

- Alison Coffey

Tight Knit Community

On Tuesday, January 6, 2009, women at the Muslim American Society located in the ISBCC gathered as they do weekly to knit anything from scarves to coasters. The items which are knitted are to be distributed to Rosie's Place, a women's shelter in the local Roxbury community. [Meredith Klein]

Hair v. Razor

A father holds his son during a hair cut at Perfect Cuts Barber Shop on Dorchester Ave. Dre, the barber, charges less for money to cut kids' hair but jokes that he should charge more because it's never an easy job.

- Erin Baldassari

Cleaning Shop

Derek, 13, a part time employee at Perfect Cuts Barber Shop on Dorchester Ave, looks over a job well done. Derek tidies up for the two barbers each Saturday, a barber's busiest day.

- Erin Baldassari

Perfect Cuts

A young boy gets his hair cut by Diego at Universal Barber Shop and Salon near Fields Corner in Dorchester, 4 Sunday, 2009. Universal Barber Shop and Salon serves mostly Central American immigrants who live in Fields Corner.

- Erin Baldassari

Gloucester Day 1

I arrive in Gloucester at 9:30 and make my way to the Cape Ann Museum, taking a detour to catch my first glimpse of the harbor. The day begins at a chilled 28 degrees Fahrenheit. The sky is clear and the water extending to the horizon. In the distance I can make out ten pound island. At 10:15 I am at the Museum and have time to take a look around. It’s a beautiful, spacious and inundated with light. In the first room I was happily surprised to find traces of chinoiserie, a style of art that developed into a European craze in the late 17th century. Having recently completed a research project on this phenomenon, I was most excited to see these authentic pieces of porcelain, lacquer, sculptures and paintings. Beyond this room there were walls covered in paintings of the harbor, old chests and furniture, and sculptures. A large room is reserved for the work of Fitz Henry Lane, a native of Gloucester who’s work, the Cape Ann Museum has the largest collection of. There is also a library with extensive collections of material related to Gloucester artists and ships.
At 11:00 I met with Rhonda Faloon, director of the museum. This space, Faloon said, “houses the treasures of Gloucester.” The museum is directed toward the residents of Gloucester, artist and art researchers, as well as summer tourists. They host many free educational programs including a lecture today on a famous poet of Gloucester. Art is still alive in the city and contemporary works are displayed in temporary exhibits. This includes Jeff Weaver’s painting of the Bird’s Eye, a controversial topic at the moment. Many citizens are protesting the governor’s idea to tear down a historic building in “the Fort” and replace it with a large hotel. Faloon proceeded to give me the contact information for Scott Memhard of Cape Pond Ice. Before I headed out, I was treated to a tour of a beautifully maintained 18th century home of a Gloucester captain. The riches of that time were evident in the British porcelain, decorate piano, and handsome portraits.
Heading to Cape Pond Ice, I asked a man directions and continued to inquire whether he was a fisherman. Indeed he was. He asked me if I had heard the news. What news? “This morning a boat exploded and two men were lost.” I listened incredulously. What? How? He thought it was probably due to hydrolics, that the Coast Guard had only recovered one body and that the other was still missing.
News travels fast. At Cape Pond Ice my initial conversation with Scott was interrupted by one of his employees who shared the same information that I had just learned. With a hint of dark humor, Scott turned to me and said, “that is how we lose one more customer,” “and a friend” retorted his employee. A somber nod was Scott’s only response. Both men stood in silence.
Stacked against the office walls are T-shirts with large snow flakes and a poster of the character, Bugsy from the Perfect Storm , sporting said shirt. The ice from the Andrea Gale, in reality and for the film, was bought from Cape Pond. On an adjacent wall are posters of men in early twentieth century winter garb, picks in hand and a large frozen lake in the background. As I was led into the next room, it was clear that times had changed. Through the dim light, the room was fascinating. Machines with frost clinging to their metal exteriors stretched and twisted across the wooden floor. Hooks dangled ominously in the background and an imposing container of ammonium gas kept the facility steadily below freezing. In the second room we entered were large slabs of ice, 4x2x1. He showed that, unlike any other material, these heavy ice slabs (six pieces to a ton) could be slid across the wooden floor “like hockey pucks.” I gave one a push, but upon learning that a broken foot is the most common injury, decided observation would be good enough.
We exited a door to a small loading dock where two boats were tied up. While Scott showed how the tubing could transfer one ton of ice to the boats’ hulk per minute, a helicopter flew in across the harbor. We watched in silence. It was the Gloucester Coast Guard.

To be continued...

-Erika Volchan O'Conor

Tagging in Central Square

A woman walks into a shop in Central Square, unaware of the graffiti tags just around the corner. A plentiful array of graffiti and legal street art can be found around the Square, with tagger names overlapping sanctioned murals depicting a blissful, diverse community. (Jessica Bal)

Chinatown residents compete in a friendly ping pong tournament at the Chinese Consolidated Benevolent Association on Tyler Street. This building has historically been one of the most important social centres of the neighbourhood, originally as site of the Quincy School and later as a home to performance groups, English language classes and youth groups.
[Alykhan Mohamed]

Roxbury Mosque Towers Above All Others

An event staff member at the Reggie Lewis Athletic Center monitors buses lined up for a community track event on January 4, 2008. Located across the street from the Islamic Societ of Boston Cultural Center (ISBCC), the Athletic Center played host to large events in the Muslim community before the new Cultural Center was built. The ISBCC is now the largest Islamic center in New England. [Meredith Klein]

Park Street Music

John Gerard performs with his guitar in the Park Street Station of the Boston T. Commuters enjoyed and contributed to Gerard's soft rock background music for much of the afternoon and early evening on January 4, 2009. [James B. Choca]

Michael's Money Cup

Michael shows me his Dunkin Donuts cup half full of donations from park patrons. Michael can barely afford to pay the $70 dollars a night required to pay his rent, but has no job and does not receive unemployment payments from the government because he tries to sell his paintings in Boston Common. [Aalok Kanani]

Washington-Beech

Less than a mile up the road from Roslindale Square in southwest Boston stand several uniform, barracks-style buildings that comprise the Washington-Beech housing project. The roads going in open up to little more than sprawling concrete parking lots and the steam rising from the rooftop vents in the Boston winter adds to the already bleak and gritty image of the nation’s public housing stock. On an afternoon in early January there is little activity at Washington-Beech other than the gathering of a few residents who wait for the bus – perhaps because of the cold, or perhaps because a substantial portion of the residents have recently been moved out. In March of last year, the 57-year-old housing project received a HOPE VI grant from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. This $20 million award assists with the demolition of “severely distressed” public housing and the construction of mixed-income replacements. While the before and after images are striking in the complete aesthetic turnarounds that HOPE VI redevelopment offers, the shift from public housing to mixed-income brings up serious issues. The new Washington-Beech is something of an exception in that it will not have market-rate units and all will be designated as affordable, but there are still several critical issues stirring below the surface, such as resident displacement and whether upgrades in infrastructure and improved management can create a sustainable difference is a housing project that has been the site of increased violence in the past years.

The most successful approach I tried yesterday was to plant myself in the laundromat just across the street from Washington-Beech. When my 7 a.m. efforts to chat up residents at the bus stop were hindered by a lack of people, a lack of buses running on Sunday, and well-below freezing temperatures, I found myself taking refuge inside the much warmer Leisure Laundries and drawn in by the long-winded and passionate accounts of Carmen, who has worked there for the last several years. She spent a good deal of her life living in Columbia Point, formerly one of Boston’s most notorious housing projects, and the first to undergo a mixed-income redevelopment that was something of a precursor to HOPE VI. With many of her customers coming from just across Washington Street, I have found myself with plenty of residents to talk to as the laundry spins.

Carmen gazes at the Washington-Beech housing project through the door of the laundromat where she works. Labeled as “severely distressed” by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, the project was awarded a $20 million HOPE VI grant in March and will soon be demolished and rebuilt with both public and affordable housing units.

- Alison Coffey

Unemployment in Boston

Today I recognized two things that will be essential to the rest of my project: government workers, consumed in red tape and bureaucracy, really do not want to deal with student journalists, and unemployed people without a job have time on their hands to spare. My project is about the economic crisis and how it’s affecting unemployment in Boston. I spent my morning going from unemployment agency to agency, each one less helpful than the one before, and the last one telling me over the phone that it had very little time for journalists right now, let alone students acting like them. Right after she hung up on me, I got my third call of the day from a lady I’d been in contact with who works for an organization that provides career help for professionals. She offered her help with any part of the story and asked for a list of the questions that I had for her, reestablishing my faith in at least some part of the system.

I spent the rest of the day with people who relied on begging to pay the bills. In the photo I put up is Diane, a woman who has given up on finding work and relies on the pocket change of strangers to pay her $800 per month rent. After hanging out with Diane for a while I spent some time with Michael, a supposedly former politician, artist, and activist who did not receive unemployment benefits because of the few paintings he sold every month. Michael pays $80 a night to stay at a hotel, and took me to St. Paul’s church where he went some days to grab a free lunch. After today my project has become more focused, and is now looking at the contrasting experiences of the elite who find themselves unemployed and the poor in the same situation.

At night I met with Tom Arabia, a socialist pro-Palestine activist who is one of the leaders of Boston Stands with Gaza. While I am still pursuing the unemployment story with full force, I was intrigued by the pro-Gaza protests in Boston on Monday and have decided to also pursue a story about the movement in Boston. Tom told me how he radicalized around the issue of Palestine and told me about his hopes of forming a greater coalition for Palestine, for which there will be a meeting tomorrow night.

-Aalok Kanani

The Ice Cream Shop's Best Kept Secret

Wandering around Jamaica Plain, a chance meeting at the bus stop led to the unlocking of a local ice cream parlor's art secrets. The woman I took a seat next to on the bench spilled her Dunkin' Donuts iced coffee while gesturing to me about her life in JP, but she also spilled the name of a local artist and J.P. Licks employee: Thomas Durand.

Apart from scooping ice cream, Durand organizes open studio events and supports the arts community as a member of the JP Arts Council. He displays the work of local artists (including his own just recently) in the ice cream shop on a rotating basis. The building which now serves up milkshakes and waffle cones was once a firehouse and, for a time, housed an art gallery and performance space. Durand noted that as Jamaica Plain has grown as an artistic community and attracted more residents, the consequential higher cost of living has pushed many artists and studios out of the area.

Artist Thomas Durand carries one of his larger art pieces past the work of a fellow Jamaica Plain artist in the upper level of J.P. Licks Ice Cream Shop. Durano has his own darkroom on the second floor of the building.

Durand himself has secured a space upstairs from the ice cream shop for his own darkroom. Behind the EMPLOYEES ONLY door, a whole realm of hidden photography unfolds. Next to a urinal (evidence of the men's bathrooms from the firehouse) sits an ashtray and some prints alongside a list of yet-to-be-completed projects. Clothespins for drying the photos twirl in an alcove just above remains of showers. It's a place to pursue his work, and Durand doesn't mind the stacks of cow mugs and spotted merchandise in the adjacent room.

A detail of Durand's darkroom, where an unlikely mix of materials meet.

Though his story may not relate directly to the fundamental conflict of art and crime in my topic, Durand's profile reveals a bit about the artistic atmosphere of Jamaica Plain and the difficulties facing Boston artists-expected to become worse with the current economic crisis. With less and less space to make art, where can locals express themselves? Where can they find an audience? Maybe the answer lies in the city streets.

-Jessica Bal