Valley of Shadows and Dreams

This is an exhibit currently on display at Arte Americas in Downtown Fresno. It is an exhibit that at first glance is merely a collection of photos taken in the Valley. However, as you read the descriptions and stories attached to the photos you realize that Ken and Melanie Light have used their talent as photographer and writer to bring to light people and places in the Valley that are overlooked and often forgotten. They've used the exhibit to bring awareness and inspire advocacy.

[*The following description is taken from the Arte Americas website.]

VALLEY OF SHADOWS AND DREAMS 
Photos and words by Ken and Melanie Light

Several years ago, Ken and Melanie Light embarked on a five-year photographic journey of a region known for its agricultural plenty – and the marginalization of its people. In their book, Valley of Shadows and Dreams, 
the Lights dig deep into the harsh truths of farm workers’ daily experiences in California’s Central Valley and take a hard look at the legacies of politics, bureaucracy and control in the region.The second collaboration between photographer Ken Light and author Melanie Light, the project began when Melanie was researching background information on Hansel Mieth, one of the first woman photographers at Life Magazine and a politically active social documentary photographer in the 1930s and 1940s.


Pouring through old, loopy letters made with a fountain pen, and scrolling through microfiche of the lettuce strike in Tulare, the vast acreage suddenly teemed with life and history. Astonished by the frenzy of development, including massive tracts of agricultural land being turned into cul de sacs and suburban neighborhoods, the Lights discovered a complex web that went far beyond residential development.
Witnessing the real estate bubble implode in the valley, the Lights expanded their story to what they can only describe as a slow motion train wreck of unsustainability. The Lights soon found the project gripping at many levels, primarily because the issues being played out in the valley, American style, happen to be the global challenges of our generation: water, land use, population, and growing economic disparity.

http://valleyofshadowsanddreams.com/

The Valley of Shadows and Dreams is at Arte Americas in Fresno, CA until April 7th. Visit Arte Americas for more information and gallery hours.