"Dirt Floors and Stone Walls" (a Jake Murphy production)

This afternoon I made my way back over to Brooklyn to check out what an old classmate of mine has been working on. Last year, Jake spent five weeks shooting some schools in India. I can go on talking about it, but just look for yourself what it was all about>> http://jacobbmurphy.com/index.php?/projects/dirt-floors-and-stone-walls/

Thanks to Facebook and all other forms of social media I was able to get a taste of what he's been up to in the last couple years. Today was his chance to exhibit his work and allow people to get up close and personal all while enjoying the food at Curry Heaven on Grand Street in Brooklyn where the event was held. I must admit at first I was not all too impressed by his work only because it seemed like it was just a reason for him to go on vacation to India and create images that mimic a few greats (with whom he has worked in the past) who I shall not name here. HOWEVER, the event this afternoon to raise funds to continue his project was very enlightening--and filling. Speaking with The Artist himself and seeing prints up close, I realized that his work is much more meaningful than I had anticipated. I was drawn to a few images. Beautiful, dynamic, telling..... whatever. He explained that there is a whole bureaucracy that he had to deal with when he got there as the Indian government is concerned with keeping the poor school system under wraps. He convinced them to let him get in there for just a day and shoot whatever he could get in that time. He was then welcomed with open arms by the teachers who were excited to see that there might be some hope out there.

It was a real eye-opening experience. I do not frequently feel very swayed about an artist's work after hearing the artist talk about it. Originally, I thought that there could not be much potential or hope in exposing these things with photography, but Jake proved himself to be more than capable of turning some heads. I know I am more than likely to contribute some money to his project, and you can too>> http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/saveindianschools/dirt-floors-and-stone-walls-saving-indias-public-s

I feel like it's also worth mentioning that the young students in India are being taught the same material in the same classroom regardless of their age or experience. Some children may already know the material being taught, some may not be able to even keep up. It is those students who are more familiar with the stuff who lend the helping hand to those who need it. Living in a dog-eat-dog society like New York City it is refreshing to see that there are kids out there who help others just because they can. It might be worth trying it out for ourselves. Jake is.

I have included some photos of the fundraising event.

CONGRATS ON THE GREAT WORK, JAKE!