honorable mention
Adam Novak united states
title
Love in the Time of Covid
I remember kindly asking guests to remove their masks for photographs, because my job as a wedding photographer seemed so pointless otherwise. The law abiding types would roll their eyes at me for even asking. Others would thank me for the moment of normalcy that a boring wedding photograph could suddenly provide. Feelings didn’t really matter at this point in life, I needed a paycheck. I didn’t feel like a Covid front line worker. I wasn’t saving lives. Yet a wedding photograph brings joy for generations.
How ironic that a couple years after the outbreak of Covid-19, I am sifting through my wedding galleries, for masked moments of love. For years I was trying to edit these masked photographs out of existence. Most Covid weddings followed the same bizarre timeline. Guests and loved ones would show up anxious, fully masked and with good intentions. Then the Reception would begin, drinks would flow, confidence and forgetfulness would bubble up, and the jubilation of a wedding celebration would overpower one’s personal paranoia. Masks would be removed to make conversation easier. And I would document it all, happy as a clam to be earning some sort of a living.
The wedding would end and I’d head home high off of love. Only then, watching the news, I’d start wondering what strain of covid I’d have next week. Wondering if my Mother and Sister would ask me not to enter their apartment, because I had photographed a wedding. A 10 day Pariah of sorts.
Kenosha Burning" (2020) - A series of photographs from the Jacob Blake protests and riots in Kenosha, Wisconsin.
“HOMELESS IN CHICAGO” (2018-Present) - No website developed. Work in progress photo essay and multimedia project. I buy signs from the Chicago homeless population in exchange for a care package, portrait, and a statement about being homeless.
“SHOT IN CHICAGO” (2017-Present) - www.shotinchicago.org a work in progress documentary depicting gun violence by interviewing its victims in Chicago. Director and Producer.
“I AM CHICAGO” (2009-2012) - www.iamchicago.net - Chicago neighborhood photography project. Portraits taken in a mobile studio documenting 30 Chicago corners spanning 2 years and all seasons.
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entry description
I think everybody is going to hate this series of photographs. They might bring back memories of how bad your breath smelled behind a mask. One of those masks that you had not washed and used for many days in a row.I remember kindly asking guests to remove their masks for photographs, because my job as a wedding photographer seemed so pointless otherwise. The law abiding types would roll their eyes at me for even asking. Others would thank me for the moment of normalcy that a boring wedding photograph could suddenly provide. Feelings didn’t really matter at this point in life, I needed a paycheck. I didn’t feel like a Covid front line worker. I wasn’t saving lives. Yet a wedding photograph brings joy for generations.
How ironic that a couple years after the outbreak of Covid-19, I am sifting through my wedding galleries, for masked moments of love. For years I was trying to edit these masked photographs out of existence. Most Covid weddings followed the same bizarre timeline. Guests and loved ones would show up anxious, fully masked and with good intentions. Then the Reception would begin, drinks would flow, confidence and forgetfulness would bubble up, and the jubilation of a wedding celebration would overpower one’s personal paranoia. Masks would be removed to make conversation easier. And I would document it all, happy as a clam to be earning some sort of a living.
The wedding would end and I’d head home high off of love. Only then, watching the news, I’d start wondering what strain of covid I’d have next week. Wondering if my Mother and Sister would ask me not to enter their apartment, because I had photographed a wedding. A 10 day Pariah of sorts.
about the photographer
Adam Novak is a bilingual photographer and filmmaker of American and Czech descent. He has a Bachelor of Fine Arts from The School of the Art Institute of Chicago. Adam Novak is the director/photographer of “I Am Chicago” - www.iamchicago.net - (2009-2011). He works in Chicago as a wide format printer "Printworthy.org" and is an avid chess player and hockey player.Kenosha Burning" (2020) - A series of photographs from the Jacob Blake protests and riots in Kenosha, Wisconsin.
“HOMELESS IN CHICAGO” (2018-Present) - No website developed. Work in progress photo essay and multimedia project. I buy signs from the Chicago homeless population in exchange for a care package, portrait, and a statement about being homeless.
“SHOT IN CHICAGO” (2017-Present) - www.shotinchicago.org a work in progress documentary depicting gun violence by interviewing its victims in Chicago. Director and Producer.
“I AM CHICAGO” (2009-2012) - www.iamchicago.net - Chicago neighborhood photography project. Portraits taken in a mobile studio documenting 30 Chicago corners spanning 2 years and all seasons.
back to gallery