Artist Statement
For my series, Wait Watchers, I set up a camera in a heavy-foot-traffic, public area and photograph the scene as I perform mundane tasks while strangers pass by me. I then examine the images to see if any of the passersby had a critical or questioning element in their face or in their body language. I consider my photographs a social experiment and I travel the world in an attempt to photograph the reactions of a diverse pool of passersby. I attempt to reverse the gaze back on to the stranger and place the viewer in an awkward position of being a passive witness to a moment in time.
Process Statement
I place camera up on a tripod or with an "assistant" and set the focus and exposure. I use either a Fuji X-Pro 1 or a Leica M9. The rangefinder allows me to focus on the spot where I will stand.
Haley Morris-Cafiero holds a BA in Photography and a BFA in Ceramics from the University of North
Florida and a MFA in Art from University of Arizona. She is an Assistant Professor and Director of
Graduate Studies at Memphis College of Art. Her series of photographs, Wait Watchers, has been
featured in over 40 sites all over the world including CBS This Morning, Huffington Post and Salon.com.
She has been nominated for the 2014 Prix Pictet and the series will be exhibited at the Newspace Center of Photography in 2014.
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