Monthly Archives: May 2009
What John Steinbeck Can Teach Us About Mexico
Text: Julie Schwietert Collazo Photo: Alex Pears There are a couple of writers whose work is firmly rooted in their own place and time, yet whose words and images always seem relevant. E.B. White is one. John Steinbeck is another. It’s embarrassing for this literature grad to admit, but I haven’t read a lot of … Continue reading
Rediscovering Richard Wright
Text & Photo: Julie Schwietert Collazo * Years ago, I read Richard Wright’s Native Son. To be candid, it didn’t remain in my memory–not like Ralph Ellison’s Invisible Man, Nella Larsen’s Passing, or Zora Neale Hurston’s Their Eyes Were Watching God– and I suspect that’s because I didn’t know much, if anything, about Wright. Most … Continue reading
Hijos de Nadie-The Children of Noone
Text: Francisco Collazo Photos: Julie Schwietert Collazo [vease abajo para la version en espanol] * “We are born with dreams in our hearts, looking for better days ahead.”- Jimmy Santiago Baca The theme of immigration has been on my mind lately: the phenomenon of people who come from all parts of the world to all … Continue reading
Historic Photo Exhibit Opens in Cuba This Friday
Who knew that the gift of a simple point-and-shoot digital camera five years ago would lead to this? When I first met Francisco’s son, Brayan, in 2003, I gave him a simple Pentax. He immediately fell in love with photography, and even his earliest images proved that he had an incredible eye and the innate … Continue reading
Some Thoughts About Cuban Cinema/Cine Cubano en Mi Memoria
Text: Francisco Collazo Photos: Francisco Collazo & Brayan Collazo [vease abajo para la version en espanol] * The 10th Havana Film Festival New York ended recently. This was my first time attending the activities, which were presented between April 16 and 23. Among the films presented, there were two short documentaries that were as familiar … Continue reading