Backyard Fights: Meeting Scarface & Photographing StreetbeefS
Free 20-Minute Lecture by Brian Finke
TUESDAY, JANUARY 10, 2023
7-7:30PM ET
FREE ONLINE LECTURE
ABOUT THE EVENT
In this free presentation acclaimed editorial and fine-art photographer Brian Finke will discuss and share images from his recently released book, Backyard Fights, which focuses on a Virginia-based fight club called Streetbeefs. During the talk you will learn about the project’s origin and how it became Brian’s long-term focus. You will also hear about Christopher "Scarface" Wilmore, the founder of Streetbeefs’, and how he built an audience of 2.8 million YouTube followers through a socially conscious message dedicated to stopping street violence.
As a preview to his upcoming workshop, Telling Stories: Defining and Developing Your Documentary Photography Project, Brian will also offer a brief introduction to his approach to visual storytelling. This bi-weekly course, currently open for enrollment, will run from February 4 through April 15th, 2023. It is meant for intermediate and advanced documentary photographers.
Brian Finke's visual cultural commentary focuses on authenticity and the absurdity of everyday life and the range of human behavior. A stylized documentarian and trained photojournalist, Finke’s honesty and intimacy when capturing subjects strikes at the core of contemporary life, with a uniquely American point of context and graphic sensibility.
Often with boundary pushing subject matter, Finke challenges the viewer to confront what is often right in front of them, with an almost surreal understanding of immediacy, time, and place. From street photography to commercial portraiture to fashion editorials, His immersion in culture-at-large creates imagery that is deeply tied to the political and emotional undertones of the modern world.
A graduate of the School of Visual Arts in New York City, Finke received a BFA in photography. He is the author of several books, and his first monograph, 2, 4, 6, 8, (2003), was named one of the best photography books by American Photo magazine. His work is in nine museum collections in the U.S. and abroad, and he regularly shoots for editorial clients like National Geographic, M magazine, and The New York Times.