Photographer Bobby Abrahamson
The Portland Project: Home, a Place of Discovery
Bobby Abrahamson presented a glimpse into his photographic love affair with Portland and the surrounding area last night at Newspace Center for Photography. The Portland Project: Home, a Place of Discovery, is an ongoing six year project that he will finish and exhibit in late 2012.
A documentary photographer, photojournalist, filmmaker, and media educator, he is a man of many talents. Originally from Atlanta, this self-described wanderer decided to call Portland his home in November of 2005. “Moving to Portland was a deliberate choice and a big change for me, finding a place to set roots in a community rather than continue my habit of hitting the open road for one after another extended journey.” This wanderlust led him to do the series “One Summer Across America”, documenting three months of his travels on a Greyhound bus during the summer of 2001 and “Rabbit” which chronicles his travels over a span of 14 years to places like New York, Atlanta, Southeast Asia, and Latin America.
The Portland Project started six years ago when Abrahamson decided to call Portland his home. “Portland lets me explore and discover new places while still feeling at home,” says Abrahamson. “Portland is liberal, green, there is tons of nature; I can never explore everything.” When he first started the project, he felt like the outsider looking in, focusing more on the everchanging landscapes and surroundings of his new home. When it came to photographing people, “the small figures in the photographs were surrogates of me wandering through the landscape.” He is a purist, using his beloved Leica camera that he takes everywhere. “There is magic of being in a certain state of mind and then finding a photo that reflects that,” says Abrahamson. “I see pictures as a reflection of the state I’m in. I have to be in a color mood or a black and white mood.”
Now Abrahamson finds himself more interested in taking portraits of the long cast of characters which calls Portland home. Using an old school 4x5 Crown Graphic camera with 55 Polaroid Positive/Negative sheet film, he wanders the streets looking for interesting subjects. He asks them if he can take their picture and sets up his tripod for the perfect shot. The images he captures are raw and haunting. “I tell people not to smile. I am looking for the real magic in the moment. Happy pictures do not have the energy I feel I can connect with. I go for pictures that have a certain pull on your heart.” He always gives his subjects a copy of the photo; a small gift for capturing their essence on film.
Abrahamson will be exhibiting his photos from another project covering struggling small towns in rural Oregon in conjunction with author Lisa Wells at Newspace in November. The collaborative effort, titled The 45th Parallel, will open November 4th. To find out more about Abrahamson, you can check out his website www.bobbyabrahamson.com, or follow his photography blog “Rabbit” at www.bobbyabrahamson.blogspot.com.
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