Break On Through

       My moment of clarity came to me during the 33rd annual celebration of the liberation of the city of Esteli. During the chaotic celebration I began to slow down my rapid fire photography and put my camera down and look at what was actually happening around me. I ceased photographing the event and began to focus on the people involved in the event. The event was of course very much a celebration that much was obvious but there was something deeper going on that I was picking up on as well that the photographs revealed to me later as well. The event was obviously very political in nature due to the fact that it was celebrating the Sandinista revolution which is the current leading political party in Nicaragua but there was more to it than met the eye. The event was very much controlled by a solid and present police force and the fervor that was being riled up for the revolutionary celebration was being funneled into the upcoming political elections and the reelection of Daniel Ortega who is already known to be slowly twisting the politics of Nicaragua so that he may remain in power at his own will. The emotion that the Nicaraguans felt for their revolutionary ancestors and for their country was being used as a manipulative tool to reelect Ortega. The crowd would continue to put their hands in the air with two fingers raised up as though displaying the universal hand signal for peace, but in reality they where proudly showing which ballot they would check off in the next election. Children raised and waved FSLN flags with pride and intense elation and I wondered... about the direction of the Nicaraguan political future.




        

 These feelings and emotions I experienced during this day of celebration where reflected in the photographs I had created that day and sparked my inspiration for the personal work I would create while in the country. I began to create a short but compact and in depth photo essay in my head and on paper about my speculations and observations of the direction of Nicaraguan politics and the role the Sandinistas and the revolution played in all this. I plan to begin to compile first hand information from the friends I have made in the country as well as research that I have collected on my own prior to and during my stay. Using this information I will write my essay with a clear point of view backed by concrete information. I will then back up the essay with first hand photographs taken on 6x7 120 film illustrating my point while providing artistic and journalistic substance to the work.