Day19 Portrait Project

Day19’s Portrait Project is an epic and ever-growing collection of 4x5 Polaroids capturing young faces in an old-fashioned way.

The subjects, a cross-section of artists, writers, performers and activists, were photographed using a large format camera, which requires the subjects freeze their expressions for around 20 seconds per image. In the era of digital point-and-shoots and phone cameras, the Portrait Project takes a comparatively slow, almost lumbering approach, one that forces the subject to re-engage. There is no hair or makeup, and no special lighting, and the result is a collection of raw, unpretentious portraits reminiscent of Depression-era Farm Security Administration photography.

“Walker Evans has always been a huge influence,” says Jeremy Weiss of Day19. “His style was to just document the people, and that is what was so beautiful about it. No tricks, no art scene politics about what’s hip and what’s not. Just straight up documentation of people. I am so obsessed with that.”

Each subject had their picture taken twice - once by Jeremy Weiss and once by Claire Weiss. There are no re-shoots, no second chances, no re-touchings.

Those photographed include artist Mel Kadel, actor Leo Fitzpatrick, musician Slash, and two-year-old baby Aya Mei Mourning Duncan. And dozens more - music producer Boom Bip, artist Sage Vaughan, actor Jack Black and Jennifer Clavin, singer with punk band Mika Miko. As word spreads, the project keeps growing – latest subjects are actress Daryl Hannah, rapper Mike Jones, filmmaker David Lynch and Reece, a forest ranger.

“One of the most inspiring things is how people that we have photographed really seem to want to help,” says Jeremy. “Everyone has had suggestions of other people we should get in touch with to photograph. It’s like they are part of something bigger, which makes it makes it feel like it is much more than just our project now.”

www.Day19.com/polaroidproject

 

- written by Caroline Ryder