Last Wednesday, I introduced you to Jennifer Moreno, a 21-year-old barista and UCSD student, who served as the jumping off point for an exciting new tack for the San Diego People Project.
Before I photographed Jennifer, I asked her a series of questions, which I hoped would lead me to my next portrait subject.
They did. Today, I photographed Jennifer’s favorite UCSD professor, Norman Bryson. After photographing Norman, I asked him a series of questions, which will lead me to next week’s installation of the San Diego People Project.
Name: Norman Bryson
Age: “I don’t know exactly. I think it’s 60. But I’d rather you didn’t say. I don’t know and nor do you.”
Occupation: Professor of the history of art at UCSD
Part of town: Lives in Mission Viejo, with a studio in Hillcrest
What is the biggest challenge facing San Diego?
“Decrease of military funding. So much of the economy depends on the Navy and the Army, that when they experience cutbacks, which they are with the present administration — they are cutting way back, my friends in the Navy, my friends in the Army are telling me exactly how deep the cuts are. And that effects the whole economy because our infrastructure to a great degree still to this day depends on how well, how affluent, how buoyant the Navy and the Army are. And right now, they’re in big retrenchment.”
Other interesting connections: Norman works in the same department as UCSD Professor Ricardo Dominguez, who we wrote about recently as the school investigated his development of a GPS device for immigrants crossing the border as well as his involvement in an online protest against University of California’s President’s Office. In fact, I photographed Norman within 100 feet of where I photographed Ricardo.
— SAM HODGSON