Setting Sun

What does everyone automatically associate with Miami, the first image that comes to mind? The weather: the bright sunshine lending rays to tanning bodies on the sandy white beaches peppered with swaying palm trees. The natural beauty is something that publicists don't have to fake and have no trouble portraying; anyone can take a picture of foamy waves lapping away at the beach. The natural beauty of Miami is the only thing about the city that is consistent and is a part of the true reality of the area.

I shot this photograph as the sun was setting on the intramural fields behind Stanford Residential College as one of my floor mates was deeply engrossed in a book she had to read for one of her classes. This to me could represent the reality of the the working class of the city, lying down on the ground below everyone else in Miami whether that means economically or socially.

At the same time, the spectacle of the photograph is the fact that it is edited to enhance the colors and highlights and shadows of the image much in the same way that publicists try to highlight only the beaches and night clubs of Miami and use them to cover up the reality of all the working class right under the surface.

What strikes me most about this picture, perhaps the punctum, is that my friend's face is completely obscured, leaving her without a definite identity. She could be anyone, but the point is that she has no identity because she is lumped together with everyone else she lives in a particular area of the city. As Nijman says the city is grouped into locals, mobiles and exiles and does not mention specific names of different people with the concept of the individual. The people are left anonymous because they are lumped into these separate categories from the start.