After posting about the photography of Tadd Myers a couple years ago, he reached out as thanks, and we began a dialogue that lead to my working with him.
While working for an American manufacturer, I’d suggested to my bosses that Tadd make a video documenting their unique factory. After some deliberation, the bosses agreed and Tadd made a few trips to the Midwest for the project. Luckily for me, I was able to watch as he worked his magic, making a beautiful process look that much more beautiful. What’s most unbelievable is that, looking at the finished product, you’d have no idea it was shot in a hundred degree heat, in a factory with no air conditioning. The documentarian of the American Craftsman Project was able to experience first hand what these laborers deal with on a daily basis. I so admire Tadd for his tenacity in seeing this project get legs.
The American Craftsman Project recently launched its Kickstarter. As Tadd explains “I have been contacted by a publisher about the creation of a book… I would like to continue the project by making roughly four to five more trips… in order to diversify it and document more of these amazing stories.” As someone on his own journey to share the stories of America’s workers, I can appreciate the difficulty funding a passion project such as this one.
If I may break into a short rant: take five minutes away from the celebrity tabloid periodical and the reality television shows which celebrate life’s smallest, pettiest moments of theatrics and give Tadd’s project a good look. It may not have Capital “D” Drama like The Jersey Shore or the latest in the divorce proceedings of one Hollywood couple or another, but it tells a far more important and a far more timely story. Our country used to make things, and for the most part, they don’t anymore. There are 12.7 million unemployed people in this country. Look around you. Support your own. Put your money back into your local economy in some way this week. Buy from a farmer. Go to the local chain grocery store. Buy something made nearby. And think of Tadd and the people he’s photographing when you do.
If you’re able, please support Tadd in his venture. And if you’re unable to, financially, please voice your support by sharing this Kickstarter project with someone who might be able to provide support to this worthiest of causes.
For more on The American Craftsman Project, visit Kickstarter.
For more on the photographer, Tadd Myers, visit his website.
