Fargo photographer brings heart of Sudan to Concordia
Concordia is a place where students prepare themselves for the richest of experiences in life, through its emphasis on an international education as well as an education rooted in the arts. Sometimes rich experiences are brought here and can be absorbed through no more than a short walk. This is the case with the photography exhibition, “African Soul, American Heart,” by Fargo photographer, Deb Dawson, currently on display in the Cyrus M. Running Gallery.
For Dawson, the journey to Africa began in Fargo with a Sudanese refugee, Joseph Makeer, whom she met in July of 2007. Makeer is one of Sudan’s Lost Boys. In the 1980s, the Arab-Muslim government of northern Sudan wanted control of the natural resources in southern Sudan—namely oil, as well as diamonds and gold. They thought the best way to gain access to these resources was to eliminate the villages and people of this region. A genocide and civil war began in that region and lasted until 2005, according to Dawson. As a way to keep rebel forces from growing, the northern military began to target the boys in the village. In response, many villages sent most of their boys and some girls into neighboring countries for safety. Some thousands of children walked across the Sudanese desert into Kenya and Ethiopia. Makeer was 10 years old when he left his home in 1987. According to Dawson, 30-45,000 children left their villages, but only 20,000 ultimately made it to refugee camps. Many in Makeer’s party succumbed to dehydration or were killed in animal attacks. Makeer imagined he would be walking for a week, but it took him four months to reach safety. In 2001, the United States opened itself to some of the refugees and offered 4,000 of the Lost Boys the opportunity to come to the United States. Makeer was one of these and arrived in Fargo in 2003. He enrolled at North Dakota State University and graduated with a degree in criminal justice in 2008.
Dawson was intrigued by Makeer’s story, the story of an orphan, because she herself has adopted three daughters, one from Korea, two from Russia.
“I sort of have a special heart for orphans and the suffering they go through,” said Dawson.
She took a special interest in Makeer, and especially in his intention to go back to Sudan and help those in his home village of Duk Payuel. Most, if not all, former Lost Boys express a great desire to help the communities they left behind. So Dawson got a team of individuals together to film a documentary of Makeer’s experience. Dawson began the process of raising funds for the project, as well as bringing together people to work on it. One individual she had in mind was Concordia film and communications professor, Greg Carlson. Dawson was lucky enough to have a chance meeting with Carlson to invite him to produce the documentary.
“Many things have been serendipitous,” said Dawson.
In December of 2007, the team learned that many of the Lost Boys would be returning to their homes in Sudan from refugee camps in Kenya. This proved to be another fortuitous event, as logistical difficulties seemed to work themselves out. Members of the team were able to take the needed break from obligations at home during this time, Makeer was on break from his studies, and it was the dry season in Sudan, the only time travel within the country would be possible. The team that traveled to Africa consisted of Makeer, Dawson, a professor from NDSU, and a cameraman, Matt McGregor. Dawson brought her camera along to document the trip in addition to the filming, but was further inspired upon her arrival to the country.
“When I got there, I saw these faces of these people, and it just was an extraordinary experience,” said Dawson.
This experience led to the creation of the exhibit, “African Soul, American Heart,” but Dawson’s background in photography is more humble than these works lead the viewer to believe. Dawson’s interest in photography began in high school, when she took a few courses in photography, and continued into her college years as a hobby. College, however, took her in a different direction, and she majored in education and English with a minor in French. She graduated, and a taught for three years in Denver. After that, she decided on a career in business, accepting a sales position with Pitney Bowes in Denver, then moving on to work in her family’s crop insurance firm for 10 years. After selling the business, Dawson got an MFA in creative writing from Moorhead State University, Minnesota, and now considers herself mainly a writer. Her husband, a professional photographer, noticed her eye for composition when she was using a compact digital camera, and got her a professional-grade camera. This inspired her to take up photography again, and she attended a number of photography workshops in the spring and summer of 2007 to cultivate her skill.
Dawson’s limited experience in photography has by no means limited the richness of her work. The gallery director, Heather Pollock, excitedly welcomed the exhibition into the gallery after a brief viewing. The exhibition takes the viewer along on the journey to Africa to see the struggles, as well as joys, of a people whose lifestyle was violently interrupted. Exciting and intriguing details of the Sudanese culture are captured in such a way that they seem more familiar than foreign. Through her photographs, Dawson is able to take the viewer and allow them to experience her subjects in a direct and vivid way.
“You can immediately see the faces of the people we’re trying to help in these photos,” said Dawson, “and you can get a sense of their story.”
