July 19: Week in Photography

 Your lens to the internet's most powerful photographs.

📸 MOST POWERFUL PHOTO OF THE WEEK 📸

AFP / Getty Images

If things domestically seem bleak, overseas is not doing much better. China is facing its worst flooding in 30 years, and this poignant shot by an unnamed AFP stringer is a powerful reminder of  the ongoing, devastating effects of the climate crisis.

📸For Your 👀 Only:

AN ESCAPE INTO WHIMSY

We spoke with KangHee Kim, the New York based photographer behind the popular Instagram account @tinycactus which features playful photo collages. The account started as a personal project called "Street Errands" in 2016, and led to collaborations with brands and showings in museums. Kim's work is also represented by BenrubiGallery in New York. 

HOW DID YOU GET INTO PHOTOGRAPHY?

I got into photography by playing around with an iPhone camera and Instagram [in my] third year in college. I started out taking lots of quirky street photos. Then I was intrigued to learn more about photography. I was a painting major and I took a few photo classes before I graduated from college. I loved painting but I realized studio practice was a bit too static for me. I found out treating photography as a painting is the way that works for me perfectly.

@tinycactus

WHAT IS YOUR PROCESS LIKE?

My process is pretty intuitive. I go out to take photos without thinking that I am going to collage most of the time. I focus on each frame without planning ahead. I have a big archive of photos from scenery and street photos. I go through them on my computer and mix and match those images. It is the most exciting part for me that lets me be in the space I want to be in.  

WHAT FIRST DREW YOU TO USING CLOUDS IN YOUR WORK?

I love their versatile quality. I am especially drawn to the shapes and movements of the clouds. My favorite clouds are cumulonimbus, which signals an upcoming storm. They may look all similar in general yet they appear in distinctive shapes throughout the day. Clouds are symbolic of the fleet of time. I love capturing them [in] moments in time which makes me appreciate [the] mundane.

@tinycactus

WHO INFLUENCES YOU?

I like Wolfgang Tillmans’ work. 

WHAT DO YOU WANT PEOPLE TO GET OUT OF THIS WORK?

I’d like people to feel what comes to their mind from their own experiences. I feel therapeutic making these images.  

DO YOU HAVE A FAVORITE IMAGE THAT YOU'VE TAKEN RECENTLY?

This one:

@tinycactus

IS THERE A SPECIFIC IMAGE THAT MEANS A GREAT DEAL TO YOU?

My photo of the old sign that reads “Welcome to Palm Springs” at the north entrance to the city is of special importance to me. The sign is a symbol of Eisenhower-era booster tourism gone to hell — the hot wind from the nearby open desert has beaten up the sign and the surrounding area in unimaginable ways. It is also a place that has been photographed many many times, and shortly after I shot it, the sign disappeared. 

DID THIS CHANGE HOW YOU THINK ABOUT PALM SPRINGS?

I will always love Palm Springs, but it is a city populated with many people who think “creativity” can only be used as a tool to fill hotel rooms and restaurants, which in the end enriches the permanent upper class of the city’s real estate developers and politicians. Now that I live in Central California, I am happy to live in an area that isn’t solely dependent on tourism, but I often miss the San Jacinto mountains and the unreal nature of the desert.

 📸THE WEEK'S PHOTO STORIES FROM BUZZFEED NEWS 📸

This week, it's hard to navigate the world around us. Should we send our children back to school? Why is breastfeeding not talked about more? Is it safe to publish the faces of protesters? These are some of the topics we explored. 

Find more of the week's best photo stories here.

A POWERFUL LOOK AT THE REALITIES OF BREASTFEEDING

Sophie Harris-Taylor

HOW OTHER COUNTRIES ARE GOING BACK TO SCHOOL

Wichai Taprieu / AP

WHY PROTESTERS DON'T WANT TO SHOW THEIR FACES

BuzzFeed News / Getty Images

📸SOME HOPE 📸

David Becker / AFP / Getty Images

Comet Neowise appeared for the first time in 6,800 years. Here it is seen in an image by David Becker for AFP above the art installation "Seven Magic Mountains" in Jean, Nevada.

"That's it from us this time — see you next week!" —Gabriel and Kate

📝 This letter was edited and brought to you by the News Photo team. Gabriel Sanchez is the photo essay editor based in New York and loves cats. Kate Bubacz is the photo director based in New York and loves dogs.  You can always reach us here.

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