Our latest gallery exhibit features the amazing photography of local resident Bob LaPree. Come check it out!
 |
| An influential village elder from the Bagram District |
During October of 2010 I went on assignment for the New Hampshire Union
Leader to cover the combat missions of our National Guard soldiers in Charlie
Company of the 172nd Mountain Infantry. Part of the perspective I wanted to provide
our readers was the interaction between our troops and the people who they are
trying to protect. The Afghan culture is ancient and varied among its distinct
regional and tribal characteristics. All societies change and evolve over time
and circumstance.
Much of Afghanistan still follows the traditional ways. Traveling
in the remote mountainous countryside that is unlike anything in America takes
one back in time, sometimes seeming like the Middle Ages. The interaction
between the modern and ancient is fascinating to observe. As a side project I
decided to make portraits and candid photos of the many Afghanis I was able to
meet. With much of the assignment involving covering the Guard conducting
combat patrols and searches for weapons and insurgents the interaction with the
local inhabitants was often tense. The courtesy of gesturing for permission to
make a portrait most often produced a pleased expression and direct contact
with photographer and ultimately the viewer. Throughout my 40 + years as a
photojournalist I’ve felt these types of images provide the viewer with a
strong empathy with the subject.
This collection of images came
out of a much larger exhibit that chronicled the 18 months of Charlie Company’s
deployment to Afghanistan
and its return home. Some of the captions refer to the storyline of the
previous exhibit. It is a rare opportunity to share a distant and disappearing
culture through the medium of photography and I am very pleased to share these
images with you.
Bob LaPree April 2013
