Writer – Photographer – Educator
Who's ready for Halloween this Covid-19 year? Not me, but then again, I've never been a fan of this particular holiday, not really. I've photographed and been part of Halloween-themed shows in NYC. Also, I used to photograph vampires and even had some images featured in a local show, in 2014; years ago I even [...]
Can you still recall how excited you were about the beginning of the year? Can you still recall your New Year's resolutions? Have you had a chance or strength or motivation to accomplish any of those resolutions? And how about that 2020 vision? Maybe "plagued" might be a more appropriate word to describe this year. [...]
A new photo book provides a snapshot of a new series of black-and-white photography that explores the role of gesture in communication and self-expression in a world pre- and post-Coronavirus pandemic As I might have mentioned in previous posts, ever since the beginning of this year I've been working, on and off, on a series [...]
How I made that shot and the story behind my "No Surrender" image Those of you reading this blog might recall some of my previous posts mentioning a new series of hand portraits and self-portraits, which is still very much a work in progress. Here's the story behind one of the images in this series--No [...]
Drawing parallels between AIDS and Covid-19 pandemics (or how HIV and AIDS has inspired creative work capturing Coronavirus and Covid-19) Several people, on different occasions, have asked me to talk about similarities and differences between the pandemic of the eighties (or the eighties' "plague," how Larry Kramer called it) and the current, Coronavirus pandemic. While [...]
Questions creatives might ask themselves in a time of Coronavirus pandemic Sometimes I think that this pandemic is a blessing in disguise, to some extent and in some strange way, that is. Coronavirus pandemic has really brought into focus many aspects of our lives and issues in our lives. As I might have mentioned in [...]
A visual representation of the evolution of mental distress caused by the ongoing Coronavirus pandemic I've thought about photographing pain (physical and mental) in a series of self-portraits, but found it difficult to capture pain, in action, as it targets one's own self, mind, and body. Thinking of pain and how we perceive ourselves and [...]
Since yesterday, July 27, was National New Jersey Day (who knew?), here are a few images to celebrate: Sundial on Jersey City Waterfront in black and white. (How do you measure a month in a life defined by Coronavirus pandemic?)Covid-19 USNS Comfort hospital ship arrives in NYC. ©Alina Oswald.Symposia bookstore. Hoboken, NJ. @2015 by Alina [...]
On using creative work to capture pandemics such as HIV and AIDS, and the Coronavirus pandemic Oftentimes in life we have to face extreme situations--man- or nature-made--that, in turn, force us to look at life through a new lens, and compel us to capture the experience for ourselves and for those who come after us. [...]
![The Symbolism of 7pm [cheer] in a (post) Covid-19 World](https://alinanoswald.files.wordpress.com/2020/05/covid19_ghostofcovid_bw_lr.jpg?w=720)
A visual interpretation of the meaning and symbolism of 7pm cheer for Covid-19 first responders during and post coronavirus pandemic "Silence Equals Death, so let's make some noise," I wrote in a 2012 interview with artist/activist Nancer LeMoins for A&U Magazine--America's AIDS Magazine. [As I also mentioned in my June 2019 A&U cover story, the [...]
