3725 40th Avenue South
Minneapolis, MN. 55406
612-722-6491
www.overexposuremedia.org For Immediate Release:
6/10/09
OverExposure is pleased to announce five artists to receive the 2009-10 “What’s New?” Project grants
to document Twin Cities neighborhoods..
OverExposure awarded artist grants to Michael Dvorak, David Eberhardt, Dusty Hoskovec, Dick Ott, and Sarah Stacke to record Twin Cities neighborhoods as part of the third phase of “What’s New”.
“What’s New”, is a three-year photography project to artistically document the changing demographics and challenges currently across Twin Cities neighborhoods. OverExposure, a media arts organization initiated “What’s New” in 2007. OverExposure creates partnerships between photographers and nonprofit organizations on theme specific projects.
Since 2007 fourteen photographers have received artists grants and recorded over forty Twin Cities Metropolitan neighborhoods. 10.10.10 and 32 x 4, photography exhibitions created in each of the first two years of “What’s New” have been presented at Augsburg College, Hennepin County Central Library in downtown Minneapolis, the McKnight Foundation and Travelers.
Dvorak, Eberhardt, Hoskovec, Ott, and Stacke each received a $5,000 grant to work with and record over 40 Metropolitan Twin Cities neighborhoods over the next year.
From a strong pool of applications, the five photographers were chosen based on their professional social documentary experience. They have previously received grants for their work, commissions for international assignments and been published in national magazines. OverExposure Executive Director Susan Boecher said: "We are delighted to have such a talented and committed group of professional social documentary photographers working on the third and final phase of the "What's New?" project.
ABOUT OverExposure:
OverExposure is a nonprofit media arts organization whose mission is to create photography projects that build community. OverExposure creates partnerships between tax-exempt nonprofits whose budget preclude media expenses and photographers on theme specific photography projects. OverExposure artists create portfolios that organizations can use to market their mission for up to one year. For their services, photographers receive professional art credentials that include exhibition and photo credit. Each project culminates in an art exhibition, which is used to educate, enlighten, and engage the public on pressing social issues. We support community projects that use art to engage the public on social issues.
This activity is made possible in part by funds provided by the McKnight Foundation, St. Paul Travelers’ Arts and Diversity Employee Committee and the Metropolitan Regional Arts Council from an appropriation by the Minnesota Legislature.
For further information contact:
MIKE DVORAK is a documentary and editorial photographer whose work is influenced by Cartier Bresson, Robert Frank, Diane Arbus, Richrd Avedon, August Sanders, Disfarmer, and William Albert Allard. Having worked on each phase of “What’s New” the direction of Dvorak’s personal work is the pursuit of strangers. For the last four years he has mentored with Tom Arndt, who has “influenced and encouraged me more than anyone”.
DAVID EBERHARDT a filmmaker and documentary photographer has received grants from the Open Society Institute, the Bush, Jerome and McKnight Foundations, the Film Arts Foundation and IFP Minnesota. His photography has been shown in local and national galleries and acquired by corporate and individual collectors. Eberhardts’ list of clients include: World Health Organization, Bridges Across Borders, UNAIDS: The McKnight Foundation, and California International Arts Foundation Los Angeles, California, USA: Director/Producer, promotional video. A 1993 MCAD graduate Eberhardt will approach “What’s New” by selecting a number of interesting people within each neighborhood I am assigned, getting to know them and returning to shoot them through out the year”. His goal is to create a body of work that focuses on specific individuals and their relationships to the neighborhoods in which they live.
DUSTY HOSKOVEC has twice received “What’s New” OverExposure grants. For the past several years he has worked on personal and group photography projects in the United States and abroad, which explore social and cultural situations, examining injustice and the need for community awareness.
Hoskovec is intrigued by ideas of culture and sub-culture, and what defines community around the world. His inspiration is drawn from the beauty of everyday life, the energy exchanged in meeting new people, and the pursuit of the discovery of common bonds of humanity, universal truths in society that may serve as foundations for acceptance.
DICK OTT has been a documentary/street photographer forthree decades. He holds a PHD in Social Anthropology from Stony Brook Universityanddid anthropological fieldwork in Kenya, East Africa for two years. He has taughtphotography and worked as a commercial photographer. Dick 's workillustrates societal change in cities and towns throughout the world. From Africa to Mexico and Vietnam hehas documented change in cities and small towns. For the past 18 years, he hasphotographed in different geographies and neighborhoods in China to create a body of work which demonstrates howthe People's Republichas moved from a Third World nation to one with a growing middle class.
"My experience will allow me to work efficiently and effectively to document neighborhoods in the Twin Cities. In some I am sure I have already worked. The prospect of taking on this challenge in my own backyard delights me." -Dick Ott
SARAH STACKE has worked for community newspapers in Minnesota, New York and Mississippi and has traveled to countries including Vietnam, Ghana and Bangladesh on self-assigned documentary projects. She has also spent time in Haiti, documenting the health care situation and the programs developed by Yéle Haiti, a non-profit established my musician Wyclef Jean. Her photographic career began as an assistant to Burt Glinn of Magnum Photos who inspired her to start a career in documentary work. She is dedicated to social documentary projects that strive to collaborate with communities and that aim to cultivate understanding among individuals.