Pennsylvania girl done good - LaToya Ruby Frasier

Vonder · Oct 5, 2015

Not sure how much of her work is film, but certainly some of it is done with an RB67.

Good stuff.

bvy · Oct 5, 2015

Right here in Pittsburgh. And that is HUGE! Good for her.

Rick A · Oct 5, 2015

I've been to Braddock, she can have it.

ParkerSmithPhoto · Oct 5, 2015

Why should they give $625K to ONE photographer? That's obscene. Why should ONE photographer make that much money when there are millions of working photographers struggling to feed their families on a daily basis?

In order to promote fairness, equality and social justice the money should be taken from her and divided up between all photographers.

I will anxiously await my check for $0.0001. That's how you spell JUSTICE!!

Bob Carnie · Oct 5, 2015

And why not Canadians eh?

ParkerSmithPhoto said:
Why should they give $625K to ONE photographer? That's obscene. Why should ONE photographer make that much money when there are millions of working photographers struggling to feed their families on a daily basis?

In order to promote fairness, equality and social justice the money should be taken from her and divided up between all photographers.

I will anxiously await my check for $0.0001. That's how you spell JUSTICE!!

ParkerSmithPhoto · Oct 5, 2015

Bob Carnie said:
And why not Canadians eh?

You're right! The whole MacArthur Genius Grant award process is entirely discriminatory and has alienated the global photography community. Why should LaToya Ruby Frazier HOARD all of that wealth? What about the Smiths, the Jones, the Carnies?

In this era of anger and divisiveness, we don't need more inequality, we need less. We need healing. And who's to say what GENIUS is? Are they implying that other people aren't geniuses (genii)?

Redistributing LaToya's $625 MacArthur Genius Grant will help to heal our communities. Each photographer can take his/her/ze check for $0.0001 from the MacArthur Genius Grant, march to the bank and say "See?! I'm a GENIUS, too!! I'm SPECIAL!!"

Rick A · Oct 5, 2015

Want some crackers to go with that whine........

Old-N-Feeble · Oct 5, 2015

I'm happy for her but I agree that they should have spread out the awards. Too, I saw nothing special about any of the images on her website though the series of shadows on windows was 'almost' creative.

StephenT · Oct 5, 2015

Hmmmmmm.............well, congratulations to her.

As far as my share, she can keep my $.0001.

As far as the MacArthur Foundation goes, I'll strike them off my list of grantees from my estate plan.

Just wondering, however, how far $625,000 would go toward feeding starving children, providing water purification equipment to destitute communities, caring for abused animals, etc. etc. But there always will be causes and there will always be differences in opinions as to what priority those causes should be given.

As for LaToya, I think she is pretty and I love RB's. I wonder if she has a boyfriend? I'll let her use one of my RZ's.

winger · Oct 5, 2015

I've photographed in Braddock and there are lots of things to shoot if you like decay or small things growing out of decay. I wish the flickr group that did the photo walk there had picked a warmer time of year, though, 'cause it was kinda chilly.

For those of you complaining that only one person gets the award, I found this on the MacArthur Fellowship website -

While there are no quotas or limits, typically 20 to 30 Fellows are selected each year. Between June of 1981 and September of 2013, 897 Fellows have been named. - See more at: https://www.macfound.org/programs/fellows/strategy/#sthash.aC6gbPZV.dpuf

And it also does say that only US residents are eligible.

It's the fellowship's money - let them spend it as they see fit. It really irks me when people try to tell others how they should be spending their money, especially companies and charities.

resummerfield · Oct 5, 2015

ParkerSmithPhoto said:
....The whole MacArthur Genius Grant award process is entirely discriminatory and has alienated the global photography community. Why should LaToya Ruby Frazier HOARD all of that wealth? What about the Smiths, the Jones, the Carnies?

In this era of anger and divisiveness, we don't need more inequality, we need less. We need healing. And who's to say what GENIUS is? Are they implying that other people aren't geniuses (genii)?.....

I like her work, but distributing smaller awards to more people would probably produce even better work.

Old-N-Feeble · Oct 5, 2015

Not trying to "tell" the MacCarthur Fellowship anything. Just expressing my opinion they could spread it out a little. I like my opinions.

Ken Nadvornick · Oct 5, 2015

Intelligent, well-spoken, I enjoyed her photographs. Impressive biography as well. Good for her, regarding the grant.

Ken

coigach · Oct 5, 2015

Ken Nadvornick said:
Intelligent, well-spoken, I enjoyed her photographs. Impressive biography as well. Good for her, regarding the grant.

Ken

+1

Sirius Glass · Oct 5, 2015

ParkerSmithPhoto said:
Why should they give $625K to ONE photographer? That's obscene. Why should ONE photographer make that much money when there are millions of working photographers struggling to feed their families on a daily basis?

In order to promote fairness, equality and social justice the money should be taken from her and divided up between all photographers.

I will anxiously await my check for $0.0001. That's how you spell JUSTICE!!

No, Just us!

DWThomas · Oct 5, 2015

I say good for her, she's an attractive and educated young woman who has risen above her surroundings. There's no strings attached to those grants -- perhaps she'll use some of it to do visual arts workshops in schools through some of the rust belt. Braddock is at the western end of the Faire Commonwealth in which I live, but that pattern has been replicated at many locations all over the state. The once booming towns collapse a lot faster than they recover. The anthracite coal industry in the northeast part of Pa stumbled in the 1950s and 60s. Those areas still aren't exactly booming, but they have brought in smaller industries and created some tourist attractions and I find most towns look much better than they did 15 or 20 years ago.

All sorts of industries in the greater Philadelphia area have come and gone. It's interesting to see old brick industrial buildings being rehabbed as condos!

Old-N-Feeble · Oct 5, 2015

You guys keep mentioning that she's attractive, with what superficially seems to be a male desire to reward her just because she's pretty. This could be misunderstood by some as sexist and lesser attractive women are less worthy. I like pretty ladies a LOT. But I don't think they shouldn't be rewarded for that unless they're models or strippers.

removed account4 · Oct 5, 2015

Wolfeye said:
Not sure how much of her work is film, but certainly some of it is done with an RB67.

Good stuff.

good stuff indeed !

she does very nice work, im happy she is out there preserving the area ( and her family's history in the area ) on film
because before we know it, that are will be all gone and reborn into something else.

i hope she continues !

Ken Nadvornick · Oct 5, 2015

Old-N-Feeble said:
You guys keep mentioning that she's attractive...

No, I did not. Her accomplishments speak for themselves.

Ken

Old-N-Feeble · Oct 5, 2015

Ken Nadvornick said:
No, I did not. Her accomplishments speak for themselves.

Ken

I didn't mention anyone by name. Have you read all the posts?

Okay... went back and looked but saw only one mentioning her looks... but I SWEAR there was another one.

ParkerSmithPhoto · Oct 6, 2015

Old-N-Feeble said:
I like pretty ladies a LOT. But I don't think they shouldn't be rewarded for that unless they're models or strippers.

Or hookers....

StephenT · Oct 6, 2015

"Okay... went back and looked but saw only one mentioning her looks... but I SWEAR there was another one."

I might have mentioned something along that line. "Good lookers" are not necessarily more "worthy" than "not good lookers," but "good lookers" are good to look at. That's why they call them good lookers.

Pennsylvania girl done good - LaToya Ruby Frasier

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