“Curiosity has so much to do with all of our lives, but in my work it is purely curiosity. It’s that sense of ‘Wow! This is such an amazing moment to be inspired by another person on the planet — and to have this rare opportunity to be together for these moments.’ And I think, actually, curiosity calls us to be present.” ~ Lisa Kristine

Lisa Kristine is a humanitarian photographer and fine artist. She uses her photography to expose deeply human stories and make pictures that tap our curiosity about the people and lives she has documented.

“Arresting” is the word that keeps coming up for me as I view her photographs. As in: stop me in my tracks, captivating, powerful.

We talk about her journey into documenting human trafficking and modern-day slavery, awareness and the importance of pausing, building rapport and reciprocity, visual images taking us from our heads and into our hearts, opportunities to stare, flipping narratives, being present, and seeing the Golden Gate Bridge for the very first time, over and over again.

My entire occupation is based on observing, on seeing — on pausing before people and really seeing them — and I totally missed it.

Listen to Ep. 292: Seeing & Being Seen, with Humanitarian Photographer Lisa Kristine

Lisa Kristine has worked in more than 150 countries on six continents photographing indigenous people. Her work has been exhibited by the United Nations, Davos and the Vatican. In 2017, she established the Human Thread Foundation to raise awareness of human trafficking and enslaved people.

Lisa is pictured with her photograph of Kofi. She writes: “Kofi is free today. Thousands are enslaved in fishing villages on Lake Volta, the largest man made lake in the world. Kofi was enslaved very young and rescued at the age of four or five. I met him in a shelter where he was being rehabilitated from slavery. Kids need to learn how to play again, be at ease.

“I made this image of Kofi at the well in the back of the shelter where he was bathing at the well. Picking up a big bucket of water he struggled to get it above his head and dump the delightful cool stream over his body. He giggled a lot.

“A few months after I had returned home, I got news that Kofi had been reunited with his family. Who will Kofi become because someone decided to take a stand for him? When I look at him I see every child in the world.”

Read more about visual curiosity and AI.

Check out these C2BC Classics: Perry Zurn on attending to the unseen, Amy Marvin on “curiotizing” and Rob Walker on noticing.

Thanks to writer, editor and communications specialist Stephanie Gruner Buckley for the introduction to Lisa and her work.

Theme music by Sean Balick; “Sand Reverie” by Desert Orchard, via Blue Dot Sessions.

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