by Clay Goetz

Pleasanton, CA. (December 2, 2011) – In the late spring of 2010, Livermore photographer Casey MacKenzie Johnson packed her bags and left for Haiti to assist in the rebuilding that followed the destructive earthquake of earlier that year. Her plan was to arrive in the capital city of Port-au-Prince and spend two months providing relief services in one of the many tent cities housing the 1.5 million newly homeless Haitians. She expected to see the destruction that became familiar to so many Americans through the news – but nothing could have prepared her for what that looked like first hand.

Johnson was based at the Petionville Club tent city, the largest in Port-au-Prince, housing 50,000 people on an 18-hole golf course. In Port-au-Prince, 670 million cubic feet of rubble and debris were left as poorly constructed concrete buildings crumbled in the quake and aftershocks that followed. Tent cities such as the Petionville Club quickly popped up to serve as temporary structures. However, their temporary nature was crippling. They could not adequately support their populations with relief supplies, medical care, water, or proper latrines. Disease spread quickly in the packed locations and presented a major threat to the Haitians and relief workers living there.

In spite of these tragic circumstances, Johnson caught glimpses of something other than heartache: hope. She began to document those sightings through the lens of her camera. “There is a definite duality to the aftermath of the quake. Families were left homeless, many with dead spouses, fathers, mothers, brothers, or sisters – and for some, all they have is gratitude that they are still alive,” Ms. Johnson describes of her experience. “My photography shows both sides: the destruction and the triumph that ensues when the only way to go is up.”

“Apre” is Haitian Creole for “after,” and the aftermath of the quake is what Johnson was most struck by. Studio Unfiltered in Pleasanton is hosting a gallery reception of the photos from her stay in Haiti on December 10th, from 7:00 p.m. until 10:00 p.m. at their location on the corner of Valley Avenue and Hopyard Road.

The public is invited to see through Johnson’s lens the heartbreak and resilience of the Haitian people for the opening of “Apre”. Photographs will be available for purchase, and all proceeds will benefit the J/P Haitian Relief Organization, founded by actor and humanitarian Sean Penn. The studio will also be open every Wednesday between December 14th and January 11th from 10:00 a.m. until 4:00 p.m. for walk-in showings.

As January 12th approaches, the second anniversary of the earthquake in Haiti, Studio Unfiltered and Casey MacKenzie Johnson encourage everyone to take time during the season of charity and hope to remember the Haitian people and participate in their recovery. It is two years later, but Haiti has not been forgotten.

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Contact

Casey MacKenzie Johnson, Contributor/Committee Member, Studio Unfiltered

Email: caseymac@gmail.com Phone: (925) 518-9978

About Studio Unfiltered

Studio Unfiltered is a community art space located in Pleasanton, CA featuring visual art that raises the profile of local and global justice issues. Rotating galleries showcase artists’ works around central themes related to humanitarian crises that often go unnoticed. Most of the art displayed is available for purchase, and serves as a constant reminder of the intimacy found in the immensity of the problems of injustice. Studio Unfiltered is located at 5765 Valley Avenue, Suite 150, in Pleasanton, CA 94566 and is open every Wednesday from 10:00am to 4:00pm.

http://www.studiounfiltered.com

About J/P Haitian Relief Organization

J/P Haitian Relief Organization is dedicated to saving lives and bringing sustainable programs to the Haitian people quickly and effectively. Following the devastating earthquake of 2010 J/P HRO began working immediately on the ground to make an impact in Haiti. J/P HRO works with both government and non-governmental agencies to deliver immediate results where the need is greatest. Principle efforts include providing emergency medical and primary care services, delivering badly needed medical equipment and medicine, rubble removal facilitating community regeneration, management of Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) camps, distributing food and water purification systems, improving communication systems, and developing housing and education facilities. The goal of J/P HRO is to help lift the nation of Haiti out of poverty and give the Haitian people a better life.

http://www.jphro.org

And the end of all our exploring
Will be to arrive where we started
And know the place for the first time.

T.S. Eliot

Before I get to sounding too Hallmark, let me say that The Maugerstein Wedding (a hybrid of their last names) was the hottest wedding I’ve ever shot. The weather in the Valley hovered around 105 all afternoon and I was working on a badly sprained ankle. A recipe for misery? Not this time. Nothing in the world could have distracted from all the love and joy of this union. I swear I am not exaggerating. It was an absolute honor and pleasure to be asked to capture Ben & Ambler’s Sacred Day. I would do it a hundred times over given the chance.

Once my three hours shooting time was up, I morphed into a wedding guest. Awesome! I got to eat and dance the night away with friends and family from all over the world. At the end of the night, after the band packed up to go, they served (absolutely, positively, delectable) home made French onion soup around a bonfire. Perfection. (I ate three bowls.) At the end of the end of the night all the wedding guests piled into busses to go back to their hotels in Davis… who jumped in the car to hitch a ride with me? Why, the Bride & Groom, of course. Perfect.

the beautiful bride

first look…

the gorgeous couple

Did I mention the food was to DIE for? Cause it was.

1am and piled in the back of my little Jetta. Love it!

Things I plan to write about in the near future:

Portola Coffee Lab in Costa Mesa

Photographing Ambler & Ben’s wedding

Cynthia getting married

The Britney Spears concert

My camping trip to Sequoia

Ugh, I am so behind. Sorry, Internet.

My husband is like a unicorn. He’s not the ‘I fart rainbows’ type of unicorn, he is the ‘I could totally stab you in the heart right now’ kind. He may exist, he may not; either way he is amazing and totally bad-ass.

glit·ter·a·ti noun (plural)/ˈglitərätē/
People claiming to possess special enlightenment or knowledge of glitter. Attractive, exciting, often superficial.

Model: Meesha Jones

Hair & Makeup: Brianna Scheff

Bright Shiny Morning was loaned to me by a friend with good taste. The only reason I read it was because she told me to… I am  glad I did.

I tend to be one who it much more interested in story and plot than writing style. I love books, I love to read… but what I really, really love is a good story. This isn’t that. At least, not really.

This is a well written collection of snapshots of life in the greater Los Angeles area. Some of them are heartwarming. Most of them are depressing. (LA is nothing if not the City of Broken Dreams) All of them are interesting.

Just read it. Or, you know, don’t.

There’s a land that I heard of, once in a lullaby

skies are blue

And the dreams that you dare to dream, really do come true

Someday I’ll wish upon a star

And wake up where the clouds are far behind me

Birds fly over the rainbow, why then, oh why can’t I?

Model: Dana Johnson

Hair & Makeup: Brianna Scheff

I kid, I kid.

Pedro Wedding 4/10/11

Photo Credit: Scott Cognato

Hot water: a 6-8 ounces

Espresso: triple

yummm

half&half: just a splash

Your life: Changed.