N U E V O S
Camila Shoshan 3o Secundaria
H O R I Z O N T E S
How do heroes live?
6
A hero is someone who puts others’ needs over
realizing the most detailed way to document was
their own. They inspire people through this, with
with photography. So of course, Riss became a
their selflessness and good morals when faced with
photographer. Photographing the slums was very
conflict. Conflict, there needs to be conflict for
hard because of its rather dark color palette, but
there to be heroes; that means someone could be a
Riis found a way nevertheless, the newly invented
hero to some and a villain to others. I like to find
flash camera. He related many of his photographs
heroes in movies and books, in the characters,
with articles and books written by himself, among
fictional or not, and in those who create them.
these books, the most notable one is definitely a
Authors such as the man who used his talent to
famous 1980s book titled “How the Other Half
help hundreds of thousands of people over a
Lives”. Riis’s work is responsible for exposing how
century ago, Jacob Riis.
“the other half” lived to the upper classes. Following
If you are an American photographer, or if you
his work there were many reforms set in NYC in
are very interested in NYC’s history, then I am sure
relation to housing and child labor. Riis wasn't a hero
you have heard of Jacob Riis. He was a Danish-
to everyone, some of his writings had racist
American journalist and pioneer photographer of
insinuations in them which should not be overlooked.
the flash camera. His work is a reference to how
But over all he helped many many people, and
life was for European immigrants in America in the
today, over a hundred years later, that's what
late XIX century and early XX. A Danish immigrant
matters.
himself, Jacob Riis took upon the task to document
Indeed a hero is selfless, a hero has good morals,
and expose the horrid conditions that immigrants
a hero is smart, but overall, a hero is someone who
faced living in the dangerous NYC slums where he
helps. So you and I can be heroes too, just like Jacob
himself had lived earlier in his life. To do this, he
Riis.
tried sketching and journaling, but finally ended up 101
