Boogie has long been one of my favorite photographers. I feel like in this day and age with digital photography and the internet and Photoshop, it's really tough to be a stand out photographer, but Boogie's story is what makes him so rad.
My friend and writer Matthew Newton shared a fantastic interview he just conducted with Boogie and it really got me thinking.
Boogie is an immigrant who came to NYC in 1998. He won a visa over and did the whole 'living in a shit hole loft on a mattress with nothing, shooting photos to get by' thing. Born in Serbia, Boogie documented his country's civil war. These images cut straight to your heart- I don't care how many sad or amazing photos you've seen.
He went on to photograph gang members and drug addicts in Brooklyn’s housing projects; neo-Nazi skinheads in Serbia; and transsexual prostitutes in Sao Paulo, Brazil.
Okay, so my point is this: I was having a really tough Monday, and then I reminded myself of what whimps so many of us are. Most folks have no idea what real struggle or hardship is all about...myself included. Yeah, I've seen and been through some raw shit, but nothing like a civil war, genocide, starvation, homelessness, or genuinely fearing for my life.
Hearing some realness from Boogie was refreshing to say the least.
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