Summer Camp

Our newest monograph on the work of photographer Mark Steinmetz is a collection of photographs that capture the spirit of youth during trips spent away at a summer camp. 'Two projects I focused on were little league baseball ['The Players' published by Nazraeli Press in 2015] and summer camps. Every year, from spring into summer, one would lead into another and certain things never changed. . . At summer camp, you have sleeping bags, cabins and camp res. There isn t much difference between them in 1990 or 1965. I like that time of age, too. There s a kind of grave maturity developing at around 11 years old. When a little kid laughs or cries, it doesn t have real resonance, whereas if someone has these emotions between eight and 12, there s a poignancy to it. When they become adults, it s just not the same. Many of these photos are about the predicament of being a kid put into a certain situation. In one picture, these girls who have been so horrible to each other all summer are now parting and the depth of their love just gushes out. It s almost excruciating...' Mark Steinmetz, for Huck Magazine