January 4, 2026
A visual archive of Jan. 6, 2021, through the lenses of those who were there.
©Ashley Gilbertson
Officer Eugene Goodman: The Storming of the Capitol, Washington, D.C., January 6, 2021
Showing posts with label January 6. Show all posts
Showing posts with label January 6. Show all posts
Monday, January 5, 2026
Thursday, July 24, 2025
Ashley Gilbertson On The Courage Effect Podcast
Via Suzanne Weller The Courage Effect Podcast
July 24, 2025
An unflinching conversation with award-winning photojournalist and writer Ashley Gilbertson, who has spent over two decades documenting conflict, migration, and pivotal moments that shape our world. From the battlefields of Iraq and Afghanistan to the halls of the US Capitol on January 6th, Ashley brings us face-to-face with uncomfortable truths through his lens.
In this deeply personal conversation, Ashley shares the magic that drew him to photography at 13, the weight of witnessing history, and why he believes documenting difficult stories is more crucial than ever. We explore his groundbreaking work, his evolution as a storyteller, and what it means to find courage in the darkest places.
Content Warning: This episode discusses war, conflict, domestic terrorism, and loss. Listener discretion is advised.
"The harder the work is, the better the work will be. When you get really deep into it and you want to stop, that is exactly the moment that you have to try twice as hard." -Ashley GilbertsonTuesday, February 4, 2025
"I Photographed January 6. Trump’s Pardons Can’t Erase What I Saw." --Gallery Photographer Nate Gowdy
Via Columbia Journalism Review
February 4, 2025
Reflections from an independent photojournalist.
February 4, 2025
By Nate Gowdy
"This is why I document: America loves to rebrand its sins as myth. In four years, MAGA loyalists have rewritten January 6 from every angle. Rioters have been framed as leftists in disguise, police as “crisis actors,” the attack an FBI setup—or, more outrageously, citizens on a “normal tourist visit.” By 2025, revisionism is big business. Conservative media churns out books, podcasts, and stump speeches recasting insurrection as resurrection. But my images tell another story: they depict a nation in fracture, where well-meaning neighbors and dutiful relatives cling to their “Big Lie” with an unwavering sincerity that doesn’t just reject facts—it inoculates against them, leaving everyone vulnerable to propaganda and less capable of critical thought."
Full article here: I Photographed January 6. Trump’s Pardons Can’t Erase What I Saw. - Columbia Journalism Review
Sunday, January 5, 2025
WITNESS: Nate Gowdy’s Lens on January 6, 2021
WITNESS: Nate Gowdy’s Lens on January 6th, 2021
On January 20, 2017, Nate Gowdy stood at the U.S. Capitol, camera in hand, as Donald J. Trump—with right hand raised and left atop the Lincoln Bible—took the oath of office, vowing to end “American carnage.” It was an ominous prelude to a presidency that would redefine American political expression.
Four years later, on January 6, 2021, Gowdy returned to Washington, DC, prepared to document Trump’s “Save America” rally at the Ellipse. Instead, he witnessed surreal scenes unfold: militants marching, kneeling in prayer, posing for group photos, breaking for hotdogs, rampaging against the Capitol’s sworn protectors, and leading thousands to defile the Inauguration Day stage.
This fine art exhibition, WITNESS: Nate Gowdy’s Lens on January 6th, 2021, examines that day as a theater of chaos and conviction. Gowdy's stark, unflinching images depict the U.S. Capitol, one of democracy’s most sacred symbols, as it becomes a haunting set piece in a dystopian tableau of domestic terror—an inside job.
Twice assaulted for being deemed "fake news," Gowdy persisted in exposing the truth. Shot on assignment for Rolling Stone, his images transcend traditional photojournalism, revealing the kinetic energy and raw emotions of insurrection: vulnerability, rage, fear, and euphoria. These are not just photographs of an event but intimate portraits of the humanity—and inhumanity—that defined it.
Through this collection, Gowdy challenges viewers to confront the complexities of identity, power, and the fragility of democratic ideals. WITNESS invites us to reflect on the contradictions of that day, presenting the Capitol not only as a battleground but as a mirror to the nation itself. What do these images reveal about us—and what do they demand we reckon with?
In association with Monroe Gallery of Photography
Artist Reception
Thursday January 16 // 6 - 9 p.m.
The artist will be in attendance.
1411 34th Avenue
Seattle, WA 98122
206.420.5495
Thursday, November 21, 2024
WITNESS: Nate Gowdy’s Lens on January 6, 2021
WITNESS: Nate Gowdy’s Lens on January 6th, 2021
January 9 - February 15, 2025
On January 20, 2017, Nate Gowdy stood at the U.S. Capitol, camera in hand, as Donald J. Trump—with right hand raised and left atop the Lincoln Bible—took the oath of office, vowing to end “American carnage.” It was an ominous prelude to a presidency that would redefine American political expression.
Four years later, on January 6, 2021, Gowdy returned to Washington, DC, prepared to document Trump’s “Save America” rally at the Ellipse. Instead, he witnessed surreal scenes unfold: militants marching, kneeling in prayer, posing for group photos, breaking for hotdogs, rampaging against the Capitol’s sworn protectors, and leading thousands to defile the Inauguration Day stage.
This fine art exhibition, WITNESS: Nate Gowdy’s Lens on January 6th, 2021, examines that day as a theater of chaos and conviction. Gowdy's stark, unflinching images depict the U.S. Capitol, one of democracy’s most sacred symbols, as it becomes a haunting set piece in a dystopian tableau of domestic terror—an inside job.
Twice assaulted for being deemed "fake news," Gowdy persisted in exposing the truth. Shot on assignment for Rolling Stone, his images transcend traditional photojournalism, revealing the kinetic energy and raw emotions of insurrection: vulnerability, rage, fear, and euphoria. These are not just photographs of an event but intimate portraits of the humanity—and inhumanity—that defined it.
Through this collection, Gowdy challenges viewers to confront the complexities of identity, power, and the fragility of democratic ideals. WITNESS invites us to reflect on the contradictions of that day, presenting the Capitol not only as a battleground but as a mirror to the nation itself. What do these images reveal about us—and what do they demand we reckon with?
On January 20, 2017, Nate Gowdy stood at the U.S. Capitol, camera in hand, as Donald J. Trump—with right hand raised and left atop the Lincoln Bible—took the oath of office, vowing to end “American carnage.” It was an ominous prelude to a presidency that would redefine American political expression.
Four years later, on January 6, 2021, Gowdy returned to Washington, DC, prepared to document Trump’s “Save America” rally at the Ellipse. Instead, he witnessed surreal scenes unfold: militants marching, kneeling in prayer, posing for group photos, breaking for hotdogs, rampaging against the Capitol’s sworn protectors, and leading thousands to defile the Inauguration Day stage.
This fine art exhibition, WITNESS: Nate Gowdy’s Lens on January 6th, 2021, examines that day as a theater of chaos and conviction. Gowdy's stark, unflinching images depict the U.S. Capitol, one of democracy’s most sacred symbols, as it becomes a haunting set piece in a dystopian tableau of domestic terror—an inside job.
Twice assaulted for being deemed "fake news," Gowdy persisted in exposing the truth. Shot on assignment for Rolling Stone, his images transcend traditional photojournalism, revealing the kinetic energy and raw emotions of insurrection: vulnerability, rage, fear, and euphoria. These are not just photographs of an event but intimate portraits of the humanity—and inhumanity—that defined it.
Through this collection, Gowdy challenges viewers to confront the complexities of identity, power, and the fragility of democratic ideals. WITNESS invites us to reflect on the contradictions of that day, presenting the Capitol not only as a battleground but as a mirror to the nation itself. What do these images reveal about us—and what do they demand we reckon with?
Friday, September 13, 2024
Pennsylvania man, brother charged with assaulting New York Times photographer on January 6
Via ABC20 WHTM
September 13, 2024
Two brothers were arrested Thursday on charges that they assaulted a New York Times photographer inside the U.S. Capitol during a mob’s attack on the building more than three years ago.
David Walker, 49, of Delran, New Jersey, and Philip Walker, 52, of Upper Chichester, Pennsylvania, also are charged with stealing a camera from the photographer during the Jan. 6, 2021, attack.
Philip Walker told investigators that he tossed a camera into a body of water on his way home from Washington, D.C., according to an FBI agent’s affidavit.
Court records don’t name the photographer or identify her employer, but New York Times spokesperson Danielle Rhoades Ha confirmed that the affidavit refers to staff photographer Erin Schaff, who wrote about her experience at the Capitol.
“We are grateful to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia and the FBI for their persistence in pursuing justice in this case,” Rhodes Ha said in a statement. “Independent, fact-based journalism is a cornerstone of democracy and attacks against reporters should be a grave concern to anyone who cares about an informed citizenry.”
Philip Walker told the FBI that he believed the photographer was a member of “antifa,” a term for anti-fascist activists who often clash with far-right extremists at political protests.
A livestream video posted on social media showed the photographer standing at the top of the East Rotunda Stairs just before the Walkers assaulted her and then ran down the staircase.
Schaff recalled that two or three men in black surrounded her, demanded to know her employer and became angry when they grabbed her press pass and saw that she worked for The New York Times.
“They threw me to the floor, trying to take my cameras,” she wrote. “I started screaming for help as loudly as I could. No one came. People just watched. At this point, I thought I could be killed and no one would stop them.”
Schaff said police found her but didn’t believe that she was a journalist because her press pass was stolen.
“They drew their guns, pointed them and yelled at me to get down on my hands and knees,” she wrote. “As I lay on the ground, two other photojournalists came into the hall and started shouting ‘She’s a journalist!’”
Philip Walker was carrying what appeared to be Schaff’s photographic equipment as he fled, the FBI said. David Walker pushed the photographer again when she tried to pursue his brother and retrieve her equipment, according to the affidavit.
A magistrate judge ordered David Walker to be released on $50,000 bail after his initial court appearance in New Jersey on Thursday, court records show. An attorney who represented Walker at the hearing didn’t immediately respond to an email seeking comment.
The Walkers were arrested on complaints charging them with robbery, assault and other charges.
Other rioters were charged with assaulting an Associated Press photographer outside the Capitol during the riot. One of them, Alan Byerly, was sentenced in October 2022 to nearly three years in prison.
Nearly 1,500 people have been charged with Capitol riot-related federal crimes. Approximately 140 police officers were injured in the attack.
Two brothers were arrested Thursday on charges that they assaulted a New York Times photographer inside the U.S. Capitol during a mob’s attack on the building more than three years ago.
David Walker, 49, of Delran, New Jersey, and Philip Walker, 52, of Upper Chichester, Pennsylvania, also are charged with stealing a camera from the photographer during the Jan. 6, 2021, attack.
Philip Walker told investigators that he tossed a camera into a body of water on his way home from Washington, D.C., according to an FBI agent’s affidavit.
Court records don’t name the photographer or identify her employer, but New York Times spokesperson Danielle Rhoades Ha confirmed that the affidavit refers to staff photographer Erin Schaff, who wrote about her experience at the Capitol.
“We are grateful to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia and the FBI for their persistence in pursuing justice in this case,” Rhodes Ha said in a statement. “Independent, fact-based journalism is a cornerstone of democracy and attacks against reporters should be a grave concern to anyone who cares about an informed citizenry.”
Philip Walker told the FBI that he believed the photographer was a member of “antifa,” a term for anti-fascist activists who often clash with far-right extremists at political protests.
A livestream video posted on social media showed the photographer standing at the top of the East Rotunda Stairs just before the Walkers assaulted her and then ran down the staircase.
Schaff recalled that two or three men in black surrounded her, demanded to know her employer and became angry when they grabbed her press pass and saw that she worked for The New York Times.
“They threw me to the floor, trying to take my cameras,” she wrote. “I started screaming for help as loudly as I could. No one came. People just watched. At this point, I thought I could be killed and no one would stop them.”
Schaff said police found her but didn’t believe that she was a journalist because her press pass was stolen.
“They drew their guns, pointed them and yelled at me to get down on my hands and knees,” she wrote. “As I lay on the ground, two other photojournalists came into the hall and started shouting ‘She’s a journalist!’”
Philip Walker was carrying what appeared to be Schaff’s photographic equipment as he fled, the FBI said. David Walker pushed the photographer again when she tried to pursue his brother and retrieve her equipment, according to the affidavit.
A magistrate judge ordered David Walker to be released on $50,000 bail after his initial court appearance in New Jersey on Thursday, court records show. An attorney who represented Walker at the hearing didn’t immediately respond to an email seeking comment.
The Walkers were arrested on complaints charging them with robbery, assault and other charges.
Other rioters were charged with assaulting an Associated Press photographer outside the Capitol during the riot. One of them, Alan Byerly, was sentenced in October 2022 to nearly three years in prison.
Nearly 1,500 people have been charged with Capitol riot-related federal crimes. Approximately 140 police officers were injured in the attack.
Wednesday, July 31, 2024
The Spencer Museum of Art Adds Iconic January 6 Photograph By Nina Berman To Its Collection
Via Monroe Gallery of Photography
For Immediate Release
Wednesday, July 31, 2024Contact: Sidney S. Monroe/Michelle A. Monroe
505.992.0800/E-mail info@monroegallery.com
The Spencer Museum of Art, operated by the University of Kansas in Lawrence, Kansas, has recently added a print from January 6, 2021 by Nina Berman to its Collection. New York City-based photojournalist, filmmaker, and professor, Nina Berman covered the January 6 Insurrection at the Capitol in Washington, DC. Her photographs of that day have been published internationally, including National Geographic, Vice News, and L'Illustre.
“Big Brother, Washington DC, 2021 stands as a reminder and a warning.” — Nina Berman
Nina Berman: "Big Brother" President Trump's image appears onscreen at a rally outside the White House. Before long, a mob of his supporters would march into the Capitol building, January 6, 2021
Located on the University of Kansas campus, the Spencer Museum of Art is a vibrant cultural center that sparks curiosity, inspires creativity, and creates connections among people through art.
With a diverse collection of more than 48,000 art objects and works of cultural significance, the Spencer is the only comprehensive art museum in the state of Kansas and serves more than 50,000 visitors annually.
The Museum’s vision is to present its collection as a living archive that motivates object-centered research and teaching, creative work, and transformative public dialogue. The Spencer facilitates arts engagement and research through exhibitions, artist commissions and residencies, conferences, film screenings, musical and dramatic performances, artist- and scholar-led lectures, children’s art activities, and community arts and culture festivals.
Nina Berman’s fine art prints are represented by Monroe Gallery of Photography.
Wednesday, April 10, 2024
Nate Gowdy and Monroe Gallery Announce Major Aquisition of "Insurrection" prints
April 10, 2024
Via Nate Gowdy:
With permission from the collector, I’m proud to report the largest fine art commission of my career. He’s acquired a ten-image portfolio of 20x30-inch prints from January 6, 2021. This is a HUGE stabilizing force for me going into the summer. I am working with my partners at @monroegallery and a master printer to make the prints, too large for my trusty Epson. An exhibition opening at Midwest Museum of American Art in my hometown of Elkhart, Indiana, is slated for the first part of 2025.
Sunday, January 7, 2024
Wednesday, January 3, 2024
Three years on, little justice for press assaulted on Jan. 6
January 2, 2024
This Saturday marks three years since we watched, horrified, as rioters stormed the U.S. Capitol in a failed attempt to halt the democratic process of counting electoral votes. Nearly 20 journalists were assaulted and thousands of dollars in news equipment was destroyed in the riot.
Three years after the failed attempt to halt the democratic process of counting electoral votes on Jan. 6, 2021, the Department of Justice has charged more than 1,100 people with criminal activity that day. Yet it has charged only a few of those who committed assaults on journalists, attacked as they covered the rapidly escalating events in Washington, D.C.
Nearly 20 journalists were assaulted — dragged over a wall, punched in the face or had a camera stolen. Tens of thousands of dollars in news equipment was also destroyed in the riot.
Of the six people who were charged with assaulting journalists, most were for the mob assault of Associated Press photojournalist John Minchillo, who was pushed, punched, dragged through the crowd and thrown over a wall. Four people have been charged with his assault — two pleaded guilty and were sentenced to prison; two others are working their way through the justice system.
One of the men charged in the assault of photographer Minchillo was also charged in the assault of documentary journalist Nick Quested. Quested was filming the riot from the steps of the West Plaza when the man grabbed his camera and attempted to pull him down the stairs.
New York Times photographer Erin Schaff was inside the Capitol when a crowd attacked her. In her account for the outlet, Schaff wrote that when the rioters realized she worked for the Times, they became angry, stealing and breaking her equipment: “At this point, I thought I could be killed and no one would stop them. They ripped one of my cameras away from me, broke a lens on the other and ran away.” A woman was charged with inciting the assault on the photojournalist and sentenced to prison.
Schaff’s wasn’t the only news equipment targeted by rioters. She was one of four journalists who had gear like camera lenses, broadcast cameras and recording devices damaged during their assaults.
Most large-scale harm of news equipment occurred when rioters attacked a media staging area. A Reuters cameraman was filming as rioters ripped apart the staging area, breaking news equipment, piling it up and attempting to set fire to it.
A man, later charged with destroying equipment belonging to media outlets including The Associated Press and German public-service broadcaster ZDF, tackled the Reuters journalist to the ground. He subsequently pleaded guilty to two assault charges and was sentenced to four years in prison and three years of supervised release.
Five other rioters have been charged in relation to damaging news equipment; at least one has been sentenced to pay ZDF more than $30,000 in restitution.
For 15 other journalists documenting events in and around the Capitol on Jan. 6, no criminal charges have been filed in their assaults:
Amanda Andrade-Rhoades, a freelance photojournalist on assignment for The Washington Post, was hit by crowd-control munitions fired by law enforcement multiple times.
Independent journalist Douglas Christian told the Tracker he was harassed, pursued and punched by rioters near the Russell Senate Office Building.
PBS NewsHour correspondent Lisa Desjardins told VICE News that someone grabbed her and tried to wrest her phone away.
Independent journalist Nate Gowdy told the Tracker he was standing on a railing photographing rioters storming the Capitol when a man threatened him and shoved him off.
Independent journalist John Harrington told the Tracker he was assaulted and harassed multiple times by rioters. He said he was hit in the head with what he believes was a fire extinguisher and also hit with a chair thrown by a rioter in a scuffle with police officers.
Slate reporter Aymann Ismail said he was pushed by a Capitol Police officer as a way to slow down the crowd of people behind him who were trying to force their way into the Capitol Building.
Reporter Vincent Jolly was livestreaming for Le Figaro when a man knocked his cellphone out of his hands, destroying it.
Photojournalist Chris Jones of 100 Days in Appalachia told the Tracker he was confronted by rioters inside the Capitol for being a journalist and was picked up and dragged out of the building. Later in the day, a flash-bang grenade fired by Capitol police exploded right next to him, damaging his camera pouch.
Christopher Lee, a freelance photojournalist on assignment for Time magazine, said rioters identified him as a journalist and started to grab and remove him from the Capitol.
CNN photojournalist Ronnie McCray was assaulted by a rioter who also smacked his camera.
Freelance journalist Christopher Morris said he was assaulted at least four times, with rioters “pushing, shoving, some kicking [and] pulling” on him.
VICE News cameraman Chris Olson and international correspondent Ben Solomon were attacked by several rioters on the steps of the Capitol. A man attempted to smash Olson’s camera, damaging the handle grip, and another gave Solomon a “good hard shove to the throat.”
Members of a WTTG television news crew were assaulted and harassed by a woman who was later arrested and charged with multiple criminal counts by the DOJ for her actions during the Jan. 6 riots. While the charging document describes the woman as “kicking two members of a news team” none of the charges filed were directly related to their assaults.
Saturday, April 15, 2023
Glazer's Presents: The January 6th Insurrection in Photos with Nate Gowdy
Via Glazer's Camera
Join Nate Gowdy for an engaging visual presentation on the making of Insurrection, the only book of photojournalism dedicated to chronicling the deadly mob attack on the US Capitol on January 6th, 2021.
As a seasoned political photographer who had already covered 30 Trump rallies, Gowdy was confident he could handle one more. However, the events that transpired were beyond anyone’s expectations.
Gowdy will share his firsthand anecdotes and insights into his creative process amidst the chaos and violence of that fateful day. Despite being “fake news” and assaulted twice for carrying professional cameras, he remained committed to capturing the truth.
This event offers attendees the opportunity to connect with the photographer and delve deeper into the stories behind his January 6th portfolio, originally shot on assignment for Rolling Stone. He will also discuss his journey in self-publishing.
Copies of Gowdy's debut monograph, Insurrection, will be available after the presentation and Q&A.
Gowdy maintains a photography studio in Seattle’s International District, and his fine art is represented at Monroe Gallery of Photography in Santa Fe, New Mexico.
Saturday, February 18, 2023
Save The Date - March 30, 2023: Nate Gowdy: The Insurrection in Photos
February 18, 2023
Nate Gowdy – Town Hall Seattle
Nate Gowdy had previously photographed 30 Donald Trump rallies. He thought he was fully prepared for what should have been the grand finale, but the events that unfolded on January 6th, 2021, were more than anyone could have expected.
As the event transformed from protest to outright insurrection, Gowdy never stopped photographing. The result is his first monograph, Insurrection — a comprehensive yet intimate account of the events of that fateful day. The 150-page book moves readers through the day in timestamped, chronological order, bringing them a firsthand account of not just the attack on the U.S. Capitol, but what it was like to be a journalist on the front lines.
Juxtaposed are scenes of domestic terrorists kneeling and praying, posing for group photos, eating hotdogs, rampaging against the Capitol’s sworn protectors, and defiling the Inauguration Day stand, historically reserved for the stately pomp and circumstance of our representative government. On assignment for Rolling Stone, Gowdy was deemed “fake news” and assaulted twice for having professional cameras.
Gowdy joins us in the Wyncote NW Forum to share more about that historic day in January.
Nate Gowdy captures the complexities of American politics with striking clarity. Since chronicling Washington state’s fight for marriage equality in 2012, he has traveled the US to photograph pivotal events, figures, and movements across the political divide. His images have been featured in Rolling Stone, Mother Jones, PBS NewsHour, Thom Hartmann, CNN, and TIME, where his Bernie Sanders portrait graced the cover in 2016. As a co-founder of The American Superhero Project and co-author of Our Students, Their Stories, a book celebrating Seattle Public Schools’ LGBTQIA+ students, families, and staff, Gowdy is committed to elevating underrepresented voices. He serves as the official photographer for Seattle Pride, and his documentary fine art is represented at Monroe Gallery in Santa Fe.
Thursday, March 30, 2023, 7:30PM
The Wyncote NW Forum
1119 8th Ave (Entrance off Seneca St.)
Seattle, Washington 98101
Saturday, January 7, 2023
Gallery Photographer Nate Gowdy Interviewed on PBS New Hour for Anniversary of January 6 Insurrection
January 6, 2023
On Jan. 6, 2021, photographer Nate Gowdy was at the U.S. Capitol on assignment for Rolling Stone when what was billed as a pro-Trump rally escalated into an insurrection. He was on his way to take photos of the rally at the Ellipse when groups of people started walking toward the Capitol.
Hours later, Gowdy writes in his new book, he was “caught in a melee of war cries, adrenaline and suddenly surging bodies.”
After covering the mayhem outside the Capitol, Gowdy faced his own chaotic situation days later. His camera and computer with his Jan. 6 images were stolen from Washington’s Union Station.
“I would have sacrificed an arm or a leg to get those photos back,” he said.
Beyond capturing a shocking chapter in American political history, the images were also meant to be the conclusion to a book he had been long working on.
As friends tried to console him and help him replace his equipment, one acquaintance had a lucky, one-in-a-million break, spotting his original gear for sale online, and eventually reuniting him with his images.
“Insurrection,” a recent collection of 124 of Gowdy’s photos, offers a timeline of the day’s events through vivid portraits of the Trump supporters who broke into the complex while Congress counted Electoral College votes to confirm President Joe Biden’s 2020 election victory.
More than 950 people have been arrested for participating in the Capitol insurrection, the Justice Department reported Wednesday — two days ahead of the attack’s two-year anniversary. Hundreds of demonstrators and law enforcement officers were physically injured. The Capitol building sustained $1.5 million in damage. Eighteen journalists were assaulted and news equipment and cameras were damaged, according to the U.S. Press Freedom Tracker. Nine deaths have been connected to the attack and its aftermath.
“Almost four years prior to Jan. 6, 2021, I stood in the audience at the Inauguration Day stand and stared in disbelief as [President-elect Trump] vowed to uphold the Constitution and to end the specter of societal ‘American carnage,’” Gowdy said. “Now I found myself in the space – one historically reserved for solemn and dignified assembly – as it was flooded with true American carnage.”
Gowdy has worked since 2011 as a photographer for various editorial and commercial clients. He has also produced exhibitions and projects, including “The American Superhero Project” – a series of patriotic portraits featuring people of all stripes – and “Our Students, Their Stories: Celebrating LGBTQ+ Students, Families, and Staff,” a project commissioned by Seattle Public Schools.
Trump rallies became a focus of Gowdy’s work in recent years, he says in an attempt to better understand the movement. “I wanted to make photographs that could help us bridge this divide potentially. And now I see that because, again, we see what we want to see, they [my images] only perpetuate the divide, certainly with the climate we’re in. That’s not what I set out to do, but that’s what it’s become.”
The PBS NewsHour spoke with Gowdy by phone and email over the last few weeks about his experience covering the Jan. 6 attack and what led to his new book.
This conversation has been edited for length and clarity. Some of the photos featured in this story are graphic.
I’m curious how you came to be on Capitol Hill on Jan. 6. What led up to that?
Time magazine had reached out after I photographed a Bernie [Sanders] rally here in downtown Seattle being interrupted by Black Lives Matter demonstrators. … And that kind of gave me the confidence to get out there and do it. … I ended up getting the Bernie Sanders cover of Time magazine in June of 2016. … At the time, I’d only had a camera for four and a half years. So that was pretty cool.
The whole time I was out there traveling, self-funding these trips to primary states, sleeping in rental cars and doing what I had to do just to get the photos while this was happening. I thought the whole Trump-MAGA thing was a blip and I thought I had to catch it then and it would be over soon. And, you know, it didn’t end…
I saw Jan. 6 as Trump’s last stand. Excuse my language, but I knew it would be a stupid day. … I didn’t anticipate it being deadly and what it was.
This conversation has been edited for length and clarity. Some of the photos featured in this story are graphic.
I’m curious how you came to be on Capitol Hill on Jan. 6. What led up to that?
Time magazine had reached out after I photographed a Bernie [Sanders] rally here in downtown Seattle being interrupted by Black Lives Matter demonstrators. … And that kind of gave me the confidence to get out there and do it. … I ended up getting the Bernie Sanders cover of Time magazine in June of 2016. … At the time, I’d only had a camera for four and a half years. So that was pretty cool.
The whole time I was out there traveling, self-funding these trips to primary states, sleeping in rental cars and doing what I had to do just to get the photos while this was happening. I thought the whole Trump-MAGA thing was a blip and I thought I had to catch it then and it would be over soon. And, you know, it didn’t end…
I saw Jan. 6 as Trump’s last stand. Excuse my language, but I knew it would be a stupid day. … I didn’t anticipate it being deadly and what it was.
Did you ever go inside the Capitol at any point during the day?
No, I did not. … Everyone on that terrace where the inauguration platform [was on the West Front of the Capitol] had their backs to us. And so there was obviously something going on behind them. And that’s where the battle for the tunnel was. And that’s why I got to a higher elevation to have a view of it. But I didn’t want to be in the middle of it.
I didn’t have any protective gear, whereas a lot of my colleagues out there that day were militarized – wearing gas masks, goggles, helmets, boots, kneepads, you name it. But that also worked to “other” them, … whereas, I was wearing a maroon hoodie and Carhartt beanie and, besides my N95 mask and cameras othering me, a lot of people who were suspicious of me couldn’t be 100 percent certain I wasn’t a fellow “patriot” for the cause.
You were able to kind of blend in a little bit.
Yeah, I think in ways that worked to my advantage. But, that said, I was still attacked twice that day for having cameras.
How have you been since that day? How has what you saw affected you? Are you doing okay?
A lot of people care about me and ask that question a lot. And my response is that I don’t feel like I have any lingering trauma from that day. A whole lot of people do. And I’m just fine.
The trauma I experienced regarding that day didn’t have to do with the danger and the chaos or the events of Jan. 6. They had to do with on my way back to Seattle – … my camera, my computer and my photos were stolen. I’d just witnessed and photographed the most historic thing I’ve been to. And suddenly that was all gone, but for the 25 medium-res JPEGs I delivered to Rolling Stone.
Tell me about that.
This book’s photos were almost lost. On Jan. 8 at Union Station, my backpack—in it, my camera, hard drives, and laptop—were stolen. If not for the sleuthing efforts of an acquaintance, this book would not exist. Just two days after the theft, he found my camera listed on an online marketplace. I messaged the seller that it was unmistakably my Leica Q and laptop. Silence.
So close yet so far from recovering my things and particularly these images, I boarded my flight home to Seattle. Upon landing, I learned that the seller wanted me to call them. Over the phone, they claimed that they had “found” my backpack. “Praise be to God,” they exclaimed, for putting us in a position to help each other—as they attempted to extort $2,000.
Very fortunately, they agreed to return to the scene of the crime for the exchange the following day at Union Station with my friend. Amtrak Police officers went above and beyond to work with him to arrange a safe and successful sting operation. For a multitude of reasons, I didn’t press charges. The detained individual was banned from Union Station, but didn’t spend the night in jail.
What gave you the idea for a book?
I’ve been a photographer since I got a camera in 2011, and I’ve always been kind of pretty obsessed with photo books. Photography is the only thing that I let myself collect and get materialistic about. And so I’ve always kind of done long-form documentary projects in anticipation of curating the archives into books. And I’ve just never had the means to do that. And so I’ve wanted to do this for a long time. …
What spurred me to do this one was my ex-partner’s parents. When I met them, they’re very Trumpian. I love talking politics, but I tried to redirect away from politics with them. But when I mentioned, you know, I was there at the Capitol on Jan. 6 at the insurrection, her father threw a fit and made a scene at the restaurant we were at – at just me calling it an insurrection. That’s when I got the idea that, “Wow, people need to see this. They need something they can hold in their hands and point to and say, ‘Yes, this happened. Look, here it is.’”
Related: A Seattle photographer’s firsthand account of the Jan. 6 chaos | Crosscut
Tuesday, September 27, 2022
BRINK Review: "Any single one of Butow’s powerful images supports the adage that a picture is worth a thousand words"
September 26, 2022
"BRINK is the new Punctum publication of David Butow’s photographs documenting the January 6th, 2021 riots at the United States Capitol. Any single one of Butow’s powerful images supports the adage that a picture is worth a thousand words. Yet taken as a whole, the 100 color photographs that comprise BRINK can render even the most opinionated viewer speechless. BRINK is an important body of images; a historical record of the power of myths. Myths of great countries, of democracies and other assorted political structures, of checks and balances, of elections – that are neither fair nor free." --full review here
David Butow: Brink - link to exhibition and Gallery talk
Tuesday, July 26, 2022
A Pennsylvania man pleaded guilty on Monday to attacking an Associated Press photographer during the Jan. 6, 2021 riot on the U.S. Capitol
July 25, 2022
On July 22, photojournalists Nina Berman and David Butow spoke about threats photojournalists are facing. Both photographers covered January 6 at the US Capitol and talked about their experiences during the insurrection riot. View the discussion here on the Monroe Gallery YouTube page.
Sunday, July 24, 2022
George Eastman Museum Acquires Ashley Gilbertson's Photograph of Office Goodman: The Storming of The Capitol, January 6, 2021
July/August 2022 Bulletin
"Throughout its history, our institution has collected and exhibited photographs and films that address timely and timeless topics. For example, we have recently acquired the powerful photograph (above) taken by Ashley Gilbertson, who bravely documented the events at the United States Capitol during the insurrection on January 6, 2021."
Ashley Gilbertson (Australian, b. 1978) Officer Eugene Goodman: The Storming of the Capitol, Washington, DC, January 6, 2021. Chromogenic development print, 12 x 18 inches. George Eastman Museum purchase from Monroe Gallery of Photography with funds from the Rusitzky Photograph Endowment Fund. ©Ashley Gilbertson
Friday, July 22, 2022
Photojournalism Under Threat: A Conversation With Photojournalists Nina Berman and David Butow
Monroe Gallery of Photography, 112 Don Gaspar, was pleased to host photojournalists Nina Berman and David Butow for an engaging conversation on Friday, July 22,
Across America and throughout the world, photojournalists working to bring the world vital news have come under attack, often from authorities, governments, and groups using violence and repression as a form of censorship. Combined with deliberate misinformation creating public skepticism, the photojournalist’s mission of creating visual moments essential to understanding societal and political change is being threatened.
Nina Berman is a documentary photographer, filmmaker, author and educator. Her wide-ranging work looks at American politics, militarism, post violence trauma and resistance. Her photographs and videos have been exhibited at more than 100 venues from the security walls of the Za'atari refugee camp to the Whitney Museum of American Art. She is the author of Purple Hearts – Back from Iraq, (2004) portraits and interviews with wounded American veterans, Homeland, (2008) an examination of the militarization of American life post September 11, and, An autobiography of Miss Wish (2017) a story told with a survivor of sexual violence which was shortlisted for both the Aperture and Arles book prizes. Additional fellowships, awards and grants include: the New York Foundation for the Arts, the World Press Photo Foundation, Pictures of the Year International, the Open Society Foundation, the Center for Documentary Studies at Duke University, the MIT Knight Science Journalism Fellowship and the Aftermath Project. She is a Professor at Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism where she directs the photography program. She lives in her hometown of New York City.
David Butow is a freelance photojournalist whose projects and assignments have taken him to over two dozen countries including Afghanistan, Burma, Iraq, Peru, Yemen and Zimbabwe. His new book, BRINK, chronicles politics in the United States from the 2016 presidential election through the chaos of the Trump presidency, the turmoil of 2020 and concludes with the insurrection and its aftermath at the U.S, Capitol in January 2021.
Born in New York and raised in Dallas, he has a degree in Government from the University of Texas at Austin. After college he moved to Los Angeles and worked in newspapers before beginning a freelance career for magazines in the 1990's. From the mid-90's through the late-2000's he worked as a contract photographer for US News and World Report magazine covering social issues and news events such as post- 9/11 in New York, the Palestinian/Israeli Intifada, the 2003 U.S. invasion of Iraq, the 2019 Hong Kong protests, the funeral of Nelson Mandela, and the death of Pope John Paul II at the Vatican.
Most recently, his photographs from Ukraine and Ulvalde, Texas have been published in Politico, Time, and The New York Times
David's photographs have been shown in numerous exhibitions including the Asia Society NY, the United Nations NY and Visa Pour l'Image in Perpignan, France. His photographs have also appeared in books and magazines worldwide.
Thursday, July 7, 2022
David Butow, Author of the new book "Brink", on panel discussion at Monroe Gallery July 22
Friday, July 22, 5:30 PM (MDT)
In Person and Online
112 Don Gaspar, Santa Fe, NM 87501
A Panel Discussion with David Butow and Nina Berman:
Threats to Photojournalism
On Occasion of Monroe's Gallery 20th Anniversary
For more information go here.
January 6, 2021. Supporters of President Donald Trump retreat from tear gas during a battle with Law Enforcement officers on the west steps of the Capitol in Washington during the attack on the day of Joe Biden’s election certification by Congress
From a dingy motel room in the swing state of Michigan, to the Oval Office, BRINK chronicles the dynamics that unfolded during the 2016 presidential election and led, finally, to the insurrection at the U.S. Capitol in January 2021. Photographer David Butow moved from the San Francisco Bay Area to Washington, D.C. in 2017 to document what he knew would be a chaotic time in U.S. politics. “While I expected the incompetence, I underestimated the treachery,” he says in the book’s Endnotes.
“Why make a book of photographs from events that overwhelmed many of us in the last four years? We lived through history minute by minute, so much so that the gravitas of what transpired is apparent only when you step back and see how the whole saga unfolded. As revisionists seek to trivialize or downplay the events of 2016-21, it's critical to maintain a record of just how close the presidency of Donald Trump brought U.S. democracy to the brink of collapse.”
To buy the book, go to: https://www.davidbutow.com/BRINK/1
Tuesday, June 14, 2022
Friday, May 13, 2022
Pulitzer Prize Finalists: Staff of The New York Times including Ashley Gilbertson's Nominated January 6 Photograph of Officer Goodman
Bands of Jan. 6 rioters roamed the Capitol in a menacing hunt for Congressional adversaries of President Trump. Some were thwarted by a Capitol Police officer, Eugene Goodman, who—after being chased up a stairwell—diverted them from a hallway where senators and staff members were scurrying to safety. Throughout the tense encounter, Officer Goodman never drew his gun. (January 6, 2021/Ashley Gilbertson for The New York Times)
View selected photographs by Ashley Gilbertson during the Photography Show presented by AIPAD May 20-22 in the Monroe Gallery of Photography booth #113, Center 415, NYC.
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)
