Reed Mattison is a photojournalist from Bowling Green, Kentucky. He earned his bachelor’s degree in photojournalism from Western Kentucky University. Reed grew up in Southern Kentucky spending his childhood outdoors on family farms, spring creeks, and the karst hills that would come to influence his visual aesthetic. His semi-rural upbringing and education in the immigrant resettlement site of Bowling Green provided a racially and culturally diverse community that proved to be formative to his photographic philosophy and class consciousness.
His personal code of ethics rejects traditional journalism dogma of objectivity and "bothsiderism" and recognizes that historically the practice of photojournalism has been exploitative and harmful to many. He sees photography in the documentary tradition as an empathetic and collaborative process in which the subject is in as much control as possible and the final image is dignifying and honest.
Reed spent his college summers teaching at a boy's camp in Henderson County, North Carolina in the heart of Appalachia which instilled in him a passion for working with kids and the sociocultural importance of intergenerational relationships. The socioeconomic and racial diversity of the South combined with his enthusiasm for the outdoors has a heavy influence on his work. Reed aims to build class consciousness, as well as highlight the relationship people have with the natural world through photojournalism.
He most recently worked for the Jackson Hole News&Guide as a photojournalist where he made strong connections to the community before becoming a freelance photographer in Wyoming. He still lives in Jackson, Wyoming documenting local housing, labor, and environmental topics. His personal work focuses on themes of community care and cultural impacts of agriculture.
When he isn't making photographs with his neighbors, Reed is a babysitter, farmhand and works at a local art shop.
Contact:
270-392-9960
wrmattphoto@gmail.com
