documenting worlds
photography by annie appel
film-based work *
film-based work *
| jerry what makes me happy is to see other people happy and smiling. it only takes 13 muscles to smile and 27 to frown, so why not walk around with a smile on your face and save yourself the work |
| richard pretty scandinavian ladies. you are scandinavian, aren't you? |
| rodney life and knowing you're living and understanding yourself day by day makes me happy. learning from others without judging. god is with you all the time, and so we are never alone |
| debbie keeping sober victor debbie makes me happy |
| john one thing makes me happy - my son |
| sharon being able to do whatever we want scott freedom makes me happy. i just spent ten years in prision |
| esther the bible makes me happy |
| emilio to be a movie star |
| fas women, and children, and puppies, and money, and acknowledgement of life dennis god makes me happy. life makes me happy. you make me happy |
| tracy my one year old baby girl |
| blanca dios me hace feliz elias dios |
| antonio my family and my girlfriend make me happy |
| jerry lewis jr. to see the homeless get helped |
| warren i treat people the way i want to be treated. it would make me happy if people treated me the same way. |
Activism
Exchanges, (1987)*
At nine o'clock on a Sunday morning I set up
my backdrop and 4x5 view camera at Pershing
Square, a park in downtown Los Angeles. A few
people, roused from sleep by my unloading of
equipment, watched carefully as I transformed a
corner of their living place into an impromptu
studio. In the fifteen minutes that passed
between setting up and waiting for the first
person to approach me, I was filled with doubt.
What if no one wanted to be photographed? Did
I dare to approach individuals and if so, whom
would I select?
"Let go of control, Annie, and just have a little
faith," I told to myself.
"What are you doing?" asked a friendly voice. I
turned to see that the voice came from a man,
well over six feet tall, with a smile that seemed
nearly as wide.
"I'm giving you a free photograph of yourself,
what do you think of that?" I replied.
"Great, what do I have to do?" asked the man.
"I ask two favors of you: first, tell me what it is
that makes you happy, and second, think about
that when I snap the shutter."
Using a polaroid back on my camera, I was able
to give each person an instant print of the image
I captured. The only difficult part of my day
was explaining that the photograph was not a
gift, but rather an exchange.
Exchanges, (1987)*
At nine o'clock on a Sunday morning I set up
my backdrop and 4x5 view camera at Pershing
Square, a park in downtown Los Angeles. A few
people, roused from sleep by my unloading of
equipment, watched carefully as I transformed a
corner of their living place into an impromptu
studio. In the fifteen minutes that passed
between setting up and waiting for the first
person to approach me, I was filled with doubt.
What if no one wanted to be photographed? Did
I dare to approach individuals and if so, whom
would I select?
"Let go of control, Annie, and just have a little
faith," I told to myself.
"What are you doing?" asked a friendly voice. I
turned to see that the voice came from a man,
well over six feet tall, with a smile that seemed
nearly as wide.
"I'm giving you a free photograph of yourself,
what do you think of that?" I replied.
"Great, what do I have to do?" asked the man.
"I ask two favors of you: first, tell me what it is
that makes you happy, and second, think about
that when I snap the shutter."
Using a polaroid back on my camera, I was able
to give each person an instant print of the image
I captured. The only difficult part of my day
was explaining that the photograph was not a
gift, but rather an exchange.