Daylight Magazine / Keliy Anderson-Staley

© Keliy Anderson-Staley

Daylight Magazine is a wonderful publication with many great things going on; I enjoy the online format of their website as there's plenty to click through, from multimedia projects which feature monthly video podcasts and narration, to their daily blog which is an excellent resource for calls for entry and shows to see, along with their actual print magazine (get a subscription here).

One podcast that I particularly enjoyed was from Keliy Anderson-Staley whose series "Off the Grid" is about people in rural Maine who have constructed their own homes and either live without power, running water, etc. or who take advantage of solar technologies and the like for minimum environmental impact.

Anderson-Staley herself grew up in the community and says feels like both an insider and an outsider. I've always wondered if I would find a certain peace away from technology, at "one" with the land, or if being cut off from the technological necessities of my photographic process would make contentment impossible. I do think many of us in this day and age of constant news and the barrage of media sometimes fantasize about a more uncluttered life but, as the photographs show, the quote "simple life" can often be a challenge in itself. To see all of this documented is fascinating, and if anything I wish the Daylight podcast were longer, though you can find more information elsewhere, such as in her Nymphoto interview and her extremely well-written statement.

I think the social relevance of her work will make her one to watch in the months to come--and having just been awarded one of five honorable mentions in the 2009 Aperture Portfolio Prize she's well on her way .