Artist Statement
“ORGANIC” Farmers & Chefs of the Hudson Valley, published by powerHouse Books, chronicles the Hudson Valley’s organic-sustainable food movement. The 17,000-mile journey through the Hudson Valley includes over 100 of its farmers and chefs. Works from ORGANIC are included in the Permanent Collection of the Library of Congress.
Process Statement
The portraits of the farmers and chefs were photographed using the wet plate collodion process, a technique developed in the mid-19th century when the art of photography was in its infancy. The amber toned images remind us of a time when the cultivation of land was a manual process that linked the farmer directly to the soil.
Francesco Mastalia is a documentary photographer and author living in Rhinebeck, New York. Mastalia has traveled the world photographing tribal, religious, spiritual, and indigenous people. His first book DREADS, published by Workman Artisan, is a photo documentary on the history of dreadlocks. With travels to Ethiopia, Kenya, Angola, Namibia, Senegal, India, Japan, New Zealand, Jamaica, and throughout the United States, DREADS is now in its eighth printing, and includes an introduction by Pulitzer Prize winning author Alice Walker.
His recent book “ORGANIC” Farmers & Chefs of the Hudson Valley, published by powerHouse Books, chronicles the Hudson Valley’s organic-sustainable food movement. The portraits of the farmers and chefs were photographed using the wet plate collodion process, a photographic technique developed in the mid-19th century. The 17,000-mile journey through the Hudson Valley includes over 100 of its farmers and chefs. Works from ORGANIC are included in the Permanent Collection of the Library of Congress.
His current project YOGA The Secret of Life is a documentary about the spiritual and physical journey of yoga. Through photographs and text this fine art book explores the personal experiences of 108 of today’s leading practitioners and how this ancient practice has transformed their mind, body, and spirit. The photographs for the project were taken on glass plates using the 19th century wet collodion process. YOGA The Secret of Life is scheduled for worldwide release in September 2017.
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