eagle in the city, 2002
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The project was a response to the bombing in Afghanistan after the September 11th, 2001 attacks in New York City. I arrived in Germany a month after the attacks in the States, and I was questioning the American decision to bomb Afghanistan. Having myself just migrated over an ocean to be in Germany, I began to study various bird species and their migratory patterns that were being altered as a result of the bombing. I recognized that one of the many birds that was greatly affected was the Golden Eagle, a species of the eagle that lives and breeds in parts of Afghanistan. I decided to photograph a Golden Eagle specimen at the Senckenberg Natural History Museum in Frankfurt am Main and made 197 color photographic prints of the image. The total edition number represented the total amount of days I was living in Frankfurt. I chose the eagle because of its species relationship to the American and German eagles, and because both countries use the image nationally to symbolize strength, freedom and honor.While doing more research I found a quote by the historian, Denis Hollier, which he wrote in English and I had translated into German; One never emerges intact from any contact. - Jede Berührung hinterlässt ihre Spuren. I placed this quote, with its German translation on the back of each image, in addition to an email address, an edition number of the photograph and my signature. The photographs of the Golden Eagle were placed on tree trunks over a 3-day period in the city of Frankfurt during the Rundgang at the Städelschule in February of 2002.This project was made possible by a project grant from the Städelschule in Frankfurt am Main, Germany.