thedrifter
05-24-09, 08:09 AM
Shooting the war
Marine's photo exhibit captures a different view of combat zones
Sunday, May 24, 2009 3:42 AM
By Holly Zachariah
| THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH
Sgt. Shawn McMahon would like to say that he snapped the pictures of the stunning sunrise over the Afghan mountains because it was cathartic, because the beauty of it all was a break from the ugliness of war. He cannot.
He'd like to say the images were meant to be statements, illustrations, perhaps, of the juxtaposition of war against an arresting landscape.
The fact is, he is a Marine, and overseas tours, wars and training missions were simply his way of life.
Some people take pictures of birthday parties and babies, of graduations and gatherings. McMahon snaps shots of men riding camels across an arid desert, of young Iraqis happy to see the American Marines because they bring food, and of the U.S. flag flying at half-staff for a fallen comrade.
For him, the photographs are a documentary of time spent in the military, a physical reminder of his service to his country.
"My mission and my duty always came first. And if I had a few seconds of downtime, I took a few pictures to show that side of my life," said McMahon, who is on inactive reserve after his four-year enlistment ended in late 2007. "That's really all it is."
Dig deeper, and you might see more.
The photographs show sunsets the color of a ripe Georgia peach, Marines silhouetted against a striking sky, tanks rolling past bubbling and beautiful creeks, a desert rose in full bloom.
This is another side to war, one that stands in contrast to the ubiquitous scenes on the nightly news. And McMahon captured about 250,000 images one flash at a time with the Nikon digital cameras he always had in a bag at his side.
His "Windows to War" exhibit is on display tonight and next weekend at the Houston House in Marysville, part of an event sponsored by the Union County Cultural pARTnership.
"We knew right away that what we were seeing in his photographs was amazing," said organizer Christy Clark. "This was a side of war people don't think about, and we felt it was a rare and great opportunity to showcase that."
There have been questions about the appropriateness of the art, people wondering whether the exhibit would be suitable for their children. During his tours in Afghanistan and Iraq, when he was attached to security details and a combat logistics battalion, McMahon certainly saw danger.
In Afghanistan, he mostly helped to get high-profile government officials in and out of the area. In Iraq, he logged thousands of convoy miles. But when combat was his mission, he put away his camera. No one needed to tell him to.
"I am a Marine, and Marines follow the rules," said McMahon, a 26-year-old graduate of Dublin Coffman.
There are a few unsettling images -- targets burning in the distance, blood pooling in the sand -- but nothing more brutal is on public display.
For his family, the photographs help them understand something they otherwise could not.
McMahon was deployed to war the same time as his younger brother, Chad.
"With two sons over there, I had to shut it all out. I could not, would not, let my mind imagine what it was like for them," Michael McMahon said.
Then, he saw the photos.
"Each one was a frozen moment, a piece in time of what Shawn had seen, the places they both had been," he said. "His pictures helped us all understand a life we didn't know."
Shawn McMahon is a bit hesitant about discussing his display.
"What I don't want people to think is that while others were fighting, I was ignoring my duties and snapping pictures of pretty flowers."
He points to the decorated uniform that hangs under a Marine Corps flag in his office at Advanced Glass in Plain City, where he is a project manager.
"I earned that," he said. "It keeps me in check. It reminds me every day that I am a Marine, and it reminds me to do the right thing."
hzachariah@dispatch.com
pixs
http://www.dispatch.com/live/content/multimedia/daily_slideshows/2009/05/marine/marine.html
Ellie
Marine's photo exhibit captures a different view of combat zones
Sunday, May 24, 2009 3:42 AM
By Holly Zachariah
| THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH
Sgt. Shawn McMahon would like to say that he snapped the pictures of the stunning sunrise over the Afghan mountains because it was cathartic, because the beauty of it all was a break from the ugliness of war. He cannot.
He'd like to say the images were meant to be statements, illustrations, perhaps, of the juxtaposition of war against an arresting landscape.
The fact is, he is a Marine, and overseas tours, wars and training missions were simply his way of life.
Some people take pictures of birthday parties and babies, of graduations and gatherings. McMahon snaps shots of men riding camels across an arid desert, of young Iraqis happy to see the American Marines because they bring food, and of the U.S. flag flying at half-staff for a fallen comrade.
For him, the photographs are a documentary of time spent in the military, a physical reminder of his service to his country.
"My mission and my duty always came first. And if I had a few seconds of downtime, I took a few pictures to show that side of my life," said McMahon, who is on inactive reserve after his four-year enlistment ended in late 2007. "That's really all it is."
Dig deeper, and you might see more.
The photographs show sunsets the color of a ripe Georgia peach, Marines silhouetted against a striking sky, tanks rolling past bubbling and beautiful creeks, a desert rose in full bloom.
This is another side to war, one that stands in contrast to the ubiquitous scenes on the nightly news. And McMahon captured about 250,000 images one flash at a time with the Nikon digital cameras he always had in a bag at his side.
His "Windows to War" exhibit is on display tonight and next weekend at the Houston House in Marysville, part of an event sponsored by the Union County Cultural pARTnership.
"We knew right away that what we were seeing in his photographs was amazing," said organizer Christy Clark. "This was a side of war people don't think about, and we felt it was a rare and great opportunity to showcase that."
There have been questions about the appropriateness of the art, people wondering whether the exhibit would be suitable for their children. During his tours in Afghanistan and Iraq, when he was attached to security details and a combat logistics battalion, McMahon certainly saw danger.
In Afghanistan, he mostly helped to get high-profile government officials in and out of the area. In Iraq, he logged thousands of convoy miles. But when combat was his mission, he put away his camera. No one needed to tell him to.
"I am a Marine, and Marines follow the rules," said McMahon, a 26-year-old graduate of Dublin Coffman.
There are a few unsettling images -- targets burning in the distance, blood pooling in the sand -- but nothing more brutal is on public display.
For his family, the photographs help them understand something they otherwise could not.
McMahon was deployed to war the same time as his younger brother, Chad.
"With two sons over there, I had to shut it all out. I could not, would not, let my mind imagine what it was like for them," Michael McMahon said.
Then, he saw the photos.
"Each one was a frozen moment, a piece in time of what Shawn had seen, the places they both had been," he said. "His pictures helped us all understand a life we didn't know."
Shawn McMahon is a bit hesitant about discussing his display.
"What I don't want people to think is that while others were fighting, I was ignoring my duties and snapping pictures of pretty flowers."
He points to the decorated uniform that hangs under a Marine Corps flag in his office at Advanced Glass in Plain City, where he is a project manager.
"I earned that," he said. "It keeps me in check. It reminds me every day that I am a Marine, and it reminds me to do the right thing."
hzachariah@dispatch.com
pixs
http://www.dispatch.com/live/content/multimedia/daily_slideshows/2009/05/marine/marine.html
Ellie