Emily Schiffer's Cheyenne River

I recently attended a lecture with Photographer, Emily Schiffer. Emily has spent the last 5 years living in Dupree, South Dakota developing and teaching a photography program for local children. Upon moving to South Dakota, she notified many friends and colleagues and had people donate photography equipment to launch her ‘My Viewpoint’ program which is held at a local YMCA, which is essentially a small cabin in the middle of a valley region. She received about 70 cameras and a darkroom complete with supplies, chemicals and an enlarger.
Her exhibit, ‘Cheyenne River’, which is currently on exhibit at the Farnsworth Art Museum, depicts the children in the context of their play. Working at the museum, I have loved hearing people’s responses to the exhibit and was inspired by her passion for bringing art and education to underprivileged children. Prior to attending her talk, I knew that I admired her work. However, as I was sitting there, listening to her. I felt a connection with her as she got excited talking about the students and their work and progress. Emily is featured at the museum as part of her prize for winning the Arnold Newman award, which is given out annually by the Arnold and Augusta Newman foundation. Along with the exhibit, she was given $10,000 toward her program. What did she use her winnings for? She took her students on a trip to New York city. There, the students went to various museums, swam in the ocean for the first time, and even had their work exhibited at SEVEN, a Brooklyn gallery.
Listening to Emily, I was reminded of Zana Briski, a photographer who moved to Calcutta and taught children in the slums about photography as a way to document their life. Briski has also shown her students work in various galleries and even opened the door for a few of her students to received scholarships and receive an American college education. If your interested, take a look at ‘Born into Brothals’, her Academy award winning documentary.

Below are pieces from Emily’s presentation. Take a peak and enjoy a glimpse at childhood in rural South Dakota!






My favorite photo was this first photograph shown of a small girl also named Emily. Emily Schiffer recalled the context of the shot as all the children exploring an old barn. She then turned and saw little Emily kind of zoned out. She said to her, “Emily, you look very beautiful right now. May I take your picture?” Little Emily said yes and as the adjustments on the camera were made, a breeze blew by and the shirt fell off the shoulder. Between the lighting, movement with the breeze and surreal look in little Emily’s eyes, this priceless shot was able to be captured.