Minneapolis, Minnesota, 1969-1974

I’d Just graduated in Fine Arts from the University of Minnesota in 1970 and was supporting myself as a freelance photographer, but I was also working independently doing street photography. It was interesting times. I documented anti-war activities, women’s rights, gay rights, Indigenous rights, and others with what was essentially photojournalism except that I wasn’t paid by any of them.

I loved doing this. My cameras gave me access to people and situations I’d otherwise never have had. People were usually helpful, happy to introduce me to whatever aspect of their lives I found interesting.

I’ve continued to focus on portraits and telling people’s stories with photography, concentrating on under-reported communities.

Boathouses, Lake Vermilion

Having spent over 35 years visiting Lake Vermilion in Northern Minnesota I found few subjects as intriguing as the old traditional boathouses. Many of them are gone, but especially in Stuntz Bay near the Soudan Iron Mine they still stand shoulder to shoulder around that large bay.

It felt appropriate to document these interesting historical buildings with similarly old technology using wooden pinhole cameras and plastic cameras from the 1950’s, printing in a wet darkroom, and toning and hand coloring most of the prints.