Danger & Sisters Susan Fink 2019 photographs
"These images are from my documentary series entitled, 'Landmark District.' The photographs were taken in and around Butte, Montana, in one of the largest National Historic Landmark Districts in the country. These districts exist to preserve historical resources and to promote conversation with the past about the future—a discourse which is often complex. Indeed, this area’s history has been built around mining and the exploitation of human labor. Even today, despite some areas of reclamation, a significant part of the landscape remains irreparably damaged and the community struggles with high rates of poverty. Since the future of a place rests with its young people, I chose to create a visual dialogue between landscapes and interiors from this historical district and portraits of the young people who inhabit them. My question is: What is the conversation taking place between the youth and this place built around human and environmental extraction?"
Amber and Kaylee & Butte Hill
Briggs & Slag Wall
Pointing Elsewhere & Iris
Susan Fink grew up in Minneapolis, Minnesota. She studied classical violin for 17 years, earned a B.A. with honors in anthropology from the University of Chicago and a B.F.A. in media arts from the Minneapolis College of Art and Design. As a film producer and director in Los Angeles, Susan worked on six feature-length documentaries and narratives, including a selection for the Sundance Film Festival. After the decision to leave the film industry and a few years living in Montana, she returned to the Twin Cities and refocused her storytelling skills on photography. Her personal work is primarily film-based, shooting with her beloved Leica R-9 and her Hasselblad. IG: Susan Fink (@shoshanafink)