First Grader, Afghanistan Photograph

I lived in Kabul, Afghanistan for over three years while making the feature documentary, Angels Are Made Of Light. While there it became my habit to take a stills camera on our days off from filming and go through the old Kabul neighborhoods south of the Kabul river to make portraits and panoramic images. Whenever I made a portrait of someone in the neighborhood, I would always make sure to print out a copy and hand-deliver it to that person a few days later. Soon there was a steady stream of people asking to have their portraits made - more than I could have ever accommodated. It was great for them - many never had a good picture of themselves made before - and wonderful for me, since I loved making the images. Of all the places I have photographed, Afghanistan was surprisingly one of the most open, once people started to know you. I think the key to working there was to spend an enormous amount of time getting to know everyone in a particular area. Also, I always worked with very reliable local people as my guides and interpreters, and this was the fundamental point that kept me safe and productive during the years I spent in Afghanistan. In the case of this image, it was in the Daqiqi Balkhi School, which at the time was housed in the old, destroyed Gudri Mosque in the Jada Maiwand neighborhood. There was an age beyond which it became very difficult to make portraits with girls in Afghanistan; this girl was still of an age where it was considered acceptable. I like her angelic features and the way the sunlight filters through the fine mesh of her scarf. She is the perfect picture of of hope for Afghanistan: girls going to school and becoming educated. I see this portrait as an immensely hopeful picture for the future. The goal of my work in Afghanistan and the other West Asian countries where I have lived over the past decades has always been to express to a broader audience the beautiful humanity that I found all around me. The people in these countries have suffered greatly through various wars and conflicts, but their character remains stronger than ever. My films and photographs are dedicated to my friends and all the people I met and who allowed me to immortalize them in stills and in motion.

Photography:Color on Paper

Original:One-of-a-kind Artwork

Size:16 W x 20 H x 0.1 D in

Delivery Time:Typically 5-7 business days for domestic shipments, 10-14 business days for international shipments.