Capturing local farming traditions, past and present
Stillwater Gazette
May 11, 2009
By Andrew Wallmeyer
Stillwater photographer Aileen Krzos makes her way around the Big River Farms greenhouse, quietly capturing images of Washington County's next generation of farmers while they learn how to extend the region's relatively short growing season.
Their faces offer a stark contrast to those of John and Janet Berschens, who Krzos photographed with their family on their fourth-generation Lake Elmo farm last year, but the photographer sees the two as an equally important part of Washington County's agricultural heritage.
"'What a great mix,' I thought. On one hand you've got this old farming tradition represented by these longtime Washington County farm families, and in the other you've got these new immigrants coming in and carrying that tradition on," Krzos said. "That's the story I want to tell."
Krzos hopes to document the region's agricultural heritage with a series of photographs depicting its oldest and newest farming families at a time when the county is rapidly losing its rural character.
With summer fast approaching, Krzos is now looking to identify longtime farm families who might like to participate in the project. At the end of the project, she will provide complimentary copies of her photographs to her subjects and the Washington County Historical Society.
"I'm really looking for anyone whose family has a longstanding connection to the land here, even if they just continue to live on the old farmstead without actually farming it, because that's part of the story, too," she said.
Like most professional photographers, Krzos pays the bills with a mixture portrait and wedding photography, but she said her farm families project is a labor of love that grew out of her desire to tell a larger story that might otherwise go undocumented.
"I'm not expecting to make a lot of money from this. It's just something I wanted to do," she said. "Even on short-term assignments, I'm really trying to tell a story with my images. The more time you spend with a subject, the easier that becomes. I just wanted to do something that really let me go in depth."
Krzos considered trying to capture a range of Washington County citizens in their daily lives but soon decided it would be best to narrow her focus. She said her plans for the project crystallized after she spoke with Brent Peterson, executive director Washington County Historical Society.
Peterson said he is excited about the direction the project has taken because it will create a record of people that might otherwise be overlooked.
"We talked a little bit about getting portraits of business owners, mayors, political figures - you know, the 'important people' - but I got to thinking that the best photos from the past that we have are of the new immigrants, the Swedes, Norwegians and Germans who just got off the steamboat at the landing with one suitcase and a lost look on their face," he said. "Right now, we're in another era in which there's a lot of new immigrants in Washington County, and we talked about that."
Peterson said Hmong farmers are one of the fastest-growing populations in the county.
"But we don't have any photos of them," he said, "We don't know where they are. We don't know what they're doing. And 50, 100 years from now we're going to get their descendants, who will by that time have been here for three or four generations, looking for their heritage. Part of the Historical Society's charge is to collect not only the past, but the present, as well. Aileen thought that was great, and I'm excited to see what she comes up with. ... I think it could make a great exhibit."
Before that can happen, however, Krzos said she needs to identify people willing to share their stories with her.
"In some ways, that's the hardest part," she said.
Things got a lot easier on Saturday, when Krzos introduced herself to participants in the immigrant and new farmer training program at Big River Farms in May Township. For the next several months, she plans to document the program, which provides hands-on instruction in small-scale organic farming techniques and marketing strategies.
"This is such an interesting program and so far the people have met here have been great; I'm excited to follow them through the season," Krzos said. "I think it's going to be harder to find some of those longtime farming families, but I'm optimistic that people will want to be a part of this, once they find out about it."
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