‘Arts’ Archives
A Peace of My Mind a place to hear voices for peace
By John Noltner This exhibit is the result of almost two years of work, exploring the meaning of peace. The seed for this project was planted as two events in my photographic journey coincided. The first was a sort of restlessness I had been feeling for some time that I was not doing exactly what I had been made to do. The second event was the economic downturn, which provided me with some much-needed time for reflection and evaluation. I was born the son of a social worker and an educator, so I suppose there was always fertile soil for this sort of subject matter to thrive. I have always had an interest in social justice issues, serving on several boards for non-profits that did good work both here and abroad. Yet I am not an expert on peace. I have no formal training in the subject, and I hold no related academic degree. You can ask my friends”¦ask my family”¦and they will tell you that I regularly miss the mark when it comes to living in harmony with [...]
“A Peace Of My Mind” Photo Exhibit to Open on United Nations International Day of Peace September 21 at Midtown Global Market
by Megan Swenson Twin Cities photographer John Noltner will open his new documentary exhibit, “A Peace of My Mind” at Midtown Global Market on Tuesday, Sept. 21, 2010, coinciding with the United Nation”'s International Day of Peace. “A Peace of My Mind” is a project that combines art and storytelling to explore the meaning of peace. Since early 2009, Noltner has interviewed 52 individuals about their thoughts on peace, including Holocaust survivors, a Buddhist minister, a homeless man, and many others. He asked what peace means to them, what they do to work towards it in their lives and what obstacles they encounter along the way. The exhibit showcases 24” x 36” black and white portraits of each of the subjects as well as excerpts from their interviews. Full audio from the interviews can be downloaded from the project”'s website, www.apeaceofmymind.net. Visitors are encouraged to download these interviews to their MP3 players [...]
A Peace of My Mind a place to hear voices for peace: Stories
David A. De Lampert Jr. has been living on the streets of Minneapolis for the past 30 years. A veteran, he survives on disability checks and through gratuities people offer him. David spends his days inviting people to sign his coat with a permanent marker. When they sign, they will often give him a dollar or two “to help keep me going.” He has filled up more than 100 coats with signatures over the past decade, as well as hats, umbrellas, and canes. For David, collecting signatures began as a way to survive, but eventually became a way for him to reach out to other people. I feel it”'s the richest thing you got going for you is your name. As we fight in this world to obtain something for ourselves and to be somebody - nobody wants to feel like they”'re nobody, no matter who it is. I encourage people to believe, in my travels, that we are somebody. That everybody is somebody, regardless if you are an addict, alcoholic, or whatever. Whatever your vice is [...]
