{"id":3984,"date":"2018-08-30T08:28:09","date_gmt":"2018-08-30T08:28:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.thepowerofstorytelling.org\/edition-2018\/?p=3984"},"modified":"2018-09-24T12:52:46","modified_gmt":"2018-09-24T12:52:46","slug":"nina-berman-on-breaking-traditional-storytelling-by-doing-collaborative-work-with-a-subject","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.thepowerofstorytelling.org\/edition-2018\/nina-berman-on-breaking-traditional-storytelling-by-doing-collaborative-work-with-a-subject\/","title":{"rendered":"Nina Berman on breaking traditional storytelling by doing collaborative work with a subject"},"content":{"rendered":"

Nina Berman\u00a0is a documentary photographer, filmmaker, educator and author of three books: Purple Hearts \u2013 Back from Iraq<\/em>, that presents portraits and interviews with wounded American veterans,\u00a0Homeland<\/em>, an exploration of the militarization of American life post September 11, and most recently,\u00a0An autobiography of Miss Wish,<\/em>\u00a0a story told with a survivor of sexual violence and reported over 25 years.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is work that I live, not just a project that I go out and conceive of and go out and shoot,\u201d said the New York-based photographer in a New York Times interview<\/a> on her most recent book, \u201cAn autobiography of Miss Wish\u201d, a collaboration with a survivor of sex trafficking and child pornography that span over 25 years.<\/p>\n

Nina met the protagonist Kimberly Stevens (that went by the name\u00a0of Cathy) while on assignment in London during the Thatcher years. She took photos of her that no publication was interested in at that time. They kept in touch and Nina became the recipient of medical and social security records, and, often times, Cathy\u2019s confidant. Even so, Nina fact checked everything and traveled to London to corroborate Cathy\u2019s recollections with her images.<\/p>\n

The book manages to capture the raw essence of vulnerability and helplessness, without asking the character to further expose herself in front of the camera in vulnerable moments. Everything that made it into the book had Cathy\u2019s approval, as she is as much the author of the book, as Nina is.<\/p>\n

\u201cAn autobiography of Miss Wish\u201d not only challenges traditional storytelling methods, but also encapsulates recurring themes in Nina\u2019s career, such as: how hierarchies of power operate, how justice is fought for, and how individuals live with the effects of violence. For women who lack the stature of celebrity or access to the media, the book echoes the current conversation and includes a group often excluded.<\/p>\n

Nina\u2019s wide-ranging work looks at American politics, militarism, post-violence trauma and resistance and has captured everything from post 9\/11 New York, to Afghanistan under Taliban rule, to mega-churches in America. Her photographs and videos have been exhibited at more than 100 venues, and have been recognized with prestigious awards in art and journalism from the World Press Photo Foundation, Pictures of the Year International, the Open Society Foundation, the New York Foundation for the Arts, the Aftermath Project, the Center for Documentary Studies at Duke University and Hasselblad.<\/p>\n

She is a member of the photography and film collective NOOR images<\/a> and an associate professor at the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism, where she directs the photography program.<\/p>\n

Five picks to know Nina Berman better<\/strong><\/h2>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n