Portraits from the Streets of the Baltimore Uprising

Artist and photographer Nate Larson from Baltimore photographed the Baltimore protests this week at North Avenue & Pennsylvania Avenue with his students. He was struck by the line of police blockading the street and made a portrait of each of the 27 officers comprising the human wall. He wanted to document and bear witness to the tragic events of last night.

The police was sealing off the block, displacing all those that were trying to help peacefully. The police then proceeded to hold the block – 27 officers standing shoulder to shoulder in full riot gear – while continuing to stage behind their line. Nate Larson was curious about this and made several photographs of the complete line before deciding to make individual portraits of the officers.

In the evening, he went back, and there were 26 citizens forming a human wall, separating the crowd from the police, for their mutual protection. His heart was heavy all day but lifted at this spirit of self-sacrifice and generosity. He made a portrait of the 22 members that gave their permission.

Citizen Protection Line from North to South, on North Avenue at Pennsylvania Avenue, Baltimore, Maryland, April 28, 2015

Nate Larson is a contemporary artist working with photographic media, artist books, and digital video. His projects have been widely shown across the US and internationally as well as featured in numerous media outlets, including Wired, The Picture Show from NPR, Slate, CNN, and the New York Times