Contributing
Photographers:

Denise Fuson
Carol Henry
Manu Schnetzler
Tim Baskerville


Lyrical Content by:

David Crosby
Dixie Chicks
John Mellencamp
Jefferson Airplane
Rev. Gary Davis
Richard Shindell
Elvis Costello


Political
Commentary by:

Sheryl Crow
Theodore Roosevelt
Voltaire
Grace Slick
Margaret Mead
Nickelback
Pete Seeger


YouTube feeds:

NRTMN

IF Everyone Cared

Waist Deep In The Big Muddy

House at Pooneil Corners


More background research:

History of Jim Crow

Rise and Fall of Jim Crow

No Child Unrecruited

Hurricane Katrina

Rev. Gary Davis

"I wonder who they are
The men who really run this land.
And I wonder why they run it
With such a thoughtless hand."

"What are their names
And on what streets do they live?
I'd like to ride right over
This afternoon and give
Them a piece of my mind,
About peace for Mankind.
Peace is not an awful lot to ask."

(What are their Names
by David Crosby, Guerrilla Music, 1971)

Easter Rising ©Tim Baskerville

When we first thought of launching this, our most "political online show" to date, we knew the response would run the gamut from, shall we say, "underwhelming" to outright hostile. Wow - we really had no idea! This is something we see all too frequently, given the current political climate: Artists accepting the "muzzle" of censorship (self and other wise). Perhaps here at The Nocturnes, we really are "children of the '60s" but we are inclined to believe that artists should be almost the FIRST to speak out against the government, it's policies, and whatever band of thieves is currently running the show. We're reminded of that quote by Republican Theodore Roosevelt, in 1918: "To announce that there must be no criticism of the President, or that we are to stand by the President, right or wrong, is not only unpatriotic and servile, but is morally treasonable to the American public." And, contrary to what Sheryl Crow might say (see sidebar at right) - there are a number of musicians not afraid to deal with socio-politicla commentray, at the risk of declining record sales -note current work by Dixie Chicks, Neil Young, John Mellencamp, etc. - even Nickelback has a message in their latest single.

Given that not every NPr (Night Photographer) is inclined to write out the name of alleged "terrorist groups" (see I.R.A. image by Tim Baskerville - prospectus link below) - it was great to see a variety of appoaches to the theme. Manu Schnetzler "brought the war home" with his Nocturnal studies of the fallen City of New Orleans - "Heck of a Job," indeed! Carol Henry's series of singular "left behinds" work with sarcasm, playing on the theme of "No child left behind" - the federal legislation/military recruiting tool, requiring schools to distribute the name, home phone number and address of every student enrolled to military recruiters. And, Denise Fuson's images work on a similar humanistic level, helping us dissect a world out of order, in need of societal healing.

In the spirit of the above quote by T.R., and we salute the small, dedicated group of photographers contributing to this show - hopefully we all learned something from this nocturnal civics lesson! Billions and billions of dollars, and countless lives lost for war and killing - not a penny for the least heard of our society - the disposessed, the young, the handicapped. Let's not forget artists!

Finally, we hope that, in taking the liberty to interpret these images and provide insightful (incite-ful?) lyrical content, that we inspire other NPrs to not only create thought -provoking imagery, but messages of action and hope, as well

To see what we might have been looking for read the original Prospectus for this show. Also, be sure to visit NightTalk, the message board of The Nocturnes, and let us know what you thought of this exhibition.

One Toy Left Behind
Carol Henry ©2007


"Never doubt that a small group of committed people can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has." - Margaret Mead



One year after Katrina
(New Orleans Nov. 2006) Fidelity Flood
Manu Schnetzler ©2006


"Call it what you want to
But it's still a minstrel show
Call it what you want to
But it's still Jim Crow."
- John Mellencamp, in a
duet with Joan Baez



Handicap Parking
Denise Fuson©2007


"I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it."
-Attributed to Voltaire



One year after Katrina
(New Orleans Nov. 2006)
No Looting
Manu Schnetzler ©2006


"Artists have really never had any representation on Capitol Hill, because it's not the nature of the artist to join together and make a unified presence. Those days kind of died in the '60s."
- Sheryl Crow