September 07, 2007
In the spring of 2006 some billboards appeared along a highway near Syracuse NY, not far from the Ft. Drum Army Base. On each billboard was an enormous close-up of a young man's head on a plain dark surface. Photographer Suzanne Opton tells us how she came to make her series of portraits she calls “Soldier.” It’s on view now at the James A. Michener Museum in Doylestown, PA. Produced by Sarah Lilley.
These images do nothing to provoke a dialogue or even help the viewer empathize with these unfortunate soldiers. If these images are attempting to provoke pity, they have failed. It seems to me like these soldiers have been through enough. They should not have been asked (or told by a superior) to endure such a nonsensical, and frankly corny, photo shoot.
I agree with Erik that the images are too ambiguous to convey a clear meaning, but... these photos do illustrate a disturbing consequence of military training, that it conditions people to do as they are told. I worked with returning vets after Viet Nam and they seemed to me like robots whose programming had been suddenly removed. I often heard, "Well what do you now want us to do?"
Re: Soldiers...a waste.
Leave it to the self proclaimed
Can't believe the wasted time and money for these shots.
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