Dee Campos: El Salvador Series

June 21 – September 5, 2011
Harlem Library/NYPL
9 West 124th Street
New York, NY 10027

STATEMENT
“Photographed in El Salvador, these images are of the children residing at El Hogar del Niño orphanage. Each child was photographed individually, in an institution where they are considered as part of a whole. These portraits highlight each child’s individuality and uniqueness. Their gesture and expressions are universal in showing both pain and a sense of hope. Their sense of vulnerability at coping with a situation that is beyond their control makes these children adults, forcing them to grow up faster than they should.

Included in this series are city and landscape images of El Salvador. The juxtaposition and contrast of these images along with the portraits of the children broaden the context of the work’s narrative and illustrates what awaits these children outside the walls of the orphanage.

My intention in this body of work is to reveal the beauty and poignancy of each moment, which belies the harsh reality that these children have to face.”