Beqaa Valley, 2015

“When I was much younger, and training to be a stage actor, my teacher said something once that has always stuck with me. He said:
‘As actors, you are investigators of humanity.’
Whether I am making a portrait of a monk in Bhutan or of an American rock star on the side streets of Istanbul, the one absolute parallel in what I am trying to convey to the viewer is the simple humanity found in one’s eyes, body language or facial expression. That unspoken sense of: ‘Here we are – all in it together.’”- Zack Whitford
Zack Whitford’s expertise lies in capturing facial expressions and emotions as they occur, creating truly empathetic images. The gaze of the young Syrian girl who was photographed at a refugee camp in the Beqaa Valley incorporates the entire thesis of Humanity, instantly drawing the audience to her and forcing them to care for her, whether consciously or not. To view this image is to realize that Whitford’s stance is not to convey his own emotions, but to reveal to his audience that which already exists in the world of humankind and why we should care for it.