海角大神

When people describe photographer Lisa Kristine, two words invariably surface: compassion and humility.

For the past 30 years, while practicing her art of photography, she has received honors and awards as she鈥檚 traveled to 100 countries on six continents to chronicle the lives of people often forgotten or exploited. Among her efforts, she has worked extensively with the nongovernmental organization Free the Slaves to bring awareness of the plight of more than 27 million people enslaved worldwide. Her 2010 book, 鈥淪lavery,鈥� highlights the brutal conditions 鈥� as well as the uplifting human dignity 鈥� of individuals and children living in slavery.

When she was 11 years old, Ms. Kristine鈥檚 aunt and uncle gave her an Olympus camera. They could not have guessed then that they were seeding a career that would eventually span the globe and raise the social consciousness of many people.

As Kristine tells it, she took up photography as a hobby, taking photos of friends and family and spending hours in her home-built darkroom. But even then, she says, she never sought to create the typical 鈥渟mile鈥� photos.

鈥淚 was looking for pensiveness, for infinity,鈥� she says. She also played guitar and piano, which she believes added to the development of her creative life.

Raised in Orinda, a small city just east of Oakland, Calif., she graduated at 18 from the Fashion Institute of Design & Merchandising in San Francisco and immediately took off for Europe. Although the two-year Fashion Institute program had taught her a lot about color, design, and graphics, she says, 鈥淚 recognized that [fashion] wasn鈥檛 going to be for me.鈥�

Young and adventurous, she lived on a few dollars a day, and traveled through Europe, North Africa, and Asia taking photographs. She especially gravitated to and responded to the bold colors of Asia. Over the years, as her images found an audience among collectors, she realized she had developed a solid career.

Shortly thereafter, she says, her work became more purposeful. She spent long stretches of time looking into ancient cultures, delving into how they found meaning, whether through conventional religion, philosophy, or animism.

The people she encountered and photographed, however, were not just her subjects, she says, but her mentors.

鈥淧hotography was an instrument for me to learn about myself, through their ways of living,鈥� she says.

Kristine鈥檚 sometimes dazzling but always thoughtful and arresting images have won her a wide audience. Grounded in a rigorously honed craft of photography and in a naturalistic style, she aims deep, and her inquiry into other cultures reveals the dignity of every person, regardless of how marginalized by society. Never depressing or gratuitous, her images may depict lives lived under harsh conditions, but an infusion of hope permeates her vision.

鈥楾here are 1,000 ways to be alive鈥�
鈥淚 learned from my travels and my photography that there are 1,000 ways to be alive,鈥� she says, 鈥渁nd that all things are possible.鈥�

Today, Kristine鈥檚 gallery in Sonoma, Calif., showcases her work, which captures the attention of passersby. Once a viewer takes a few moments to stand before the huge images, casual observations fall away, replaced by an appreciation of her art accompanied by a profound questioning within the viewer鈥檚 mind.

How can photos of slaves, including children, toiling under gruesome conditions in quarries or mines, evoke a sense of beauty and invite the reader to connect with these subjects?

Elizabeth Kapu鈥檜wailani Lindsey, the first Polynesian Explorer and female Fellow in the history of the National Geographic Society, says Kristine鈥檚 photographs had an immediate effect on her when she first saw them.

鈥淎round 2008, I was walking by a gallery in Sausalito[, Calif.,] and what I saw looked like my life,鈥� Dr. Lindsey says. 鈥淔or the last 10 or 12 years I had been traversing the world to be with these images. I was compelled to go in [the gallery].鈥�

Lindsey quickly connected with Kristine, and they later traveled together to Sardinia and India.

Kristine 鈥渉as a capacity for deep, deep truth,鈥� Lindsey says. 鈥淲hat she expresses in her images is real, honest. And that thread runs through her life.鈥�

Lindsey says anthropologists such as herself have a saying about how they conduct themselves in the field: 鈥淲e take our shoes off as in a home,鈥� she says. This perfectly describes the 鈥渄eep bow of humility鈥� that Kristine assumes as she bears witness to the lives of the people she photographs, Lindsey says.

鈥淭he photos she takes draw people in because she has the ability to connect with others. She鈥檚 not only the master of the camera, but she relates with others at a deep level, with respect,鈥� Lindsey says. Kristine鈥檚 work assures us that 鈥渨e are not separate. We are the same.鈥�

Another of Kristine鈥檚 colleagues, Darlene Markovich, president of the Dalai Lama Foundation, who has known her for more than a decade, says she first discovered Kristine through the photographer鈥檚 efforts on behalf of Tibetans.

鈥淗er work is like Lisa herself,鈥� Ms. Markovich says. The photographs 鈥渟how the truth 鈥� a rare quality.... These images cause us to ask ourselves, 鈥榃hy are we allowing this [slavery] to go on?鈥� Lisa makes you realize that abolitionist is not an old term. It鈥檚 alive.鈥�

To date, Kristine has published five books, and she is the subject of four films.

A feature film and two documentaries, either about or inspired by Kristine, opened this fall. The movie 鈥淪old,鈥� produced by Emma Thompson and starring Gillian Anderson, opened in early 2014, and a documentary about Kristine, 鈥淚n Plain Sight,鈥� premi猫red at the Mill Valley (Calif.) Film Festival.

A second documentary, 鈥淪tand With Me,鈥� debuted at the Napa Valley Film Festival. It tells the story of a 9-year-old girl who raises money to help enslaved children after being inspired by Kristine鈥檚 photographs.

Kristine鈥檚 work has found other audiences across many media, including stories about her on CNN and Reuters, TED talk events, and talks at universities and museums around the world. She was chosen as the sole exhibitor at the 2009 Vancouver Peace Summit, attended by the Dalai Lama and other Nobel laureates. And Christie鈥檚 auction house has sold her work to raise money for her causes.

鈥楲ife is a canvas, and you create it鈥�
Kristine has also been recognized by South African Archbishop Desmond Tutu, the queen mother of Bhutan, and the humanitarian charity Amnesty International for her contributions. And in 2013, she won the Lucie Humanitarian Award, which honors the work of master photographers around the world.

Today, three decades into her career, Kristine continues to travel the globe, embracing both elders and children as her mentors.

鈥淢y work has allowed me to know that life is a canvas, and you create it,鈥� Kristine says.

As she continues her journeys, filling in her canvas, she takes her camera with her every step of the way.

鈥� To learn more about Lisa Kristine and her work, visit www.lisakristine.com.

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