Andrew Whitlock

This issue features the work of Andrew Whitlock, a photographer, adjunct professor for the Utah State University Art Department, and current associate curator for the Nora Eccles Harrison Museum of Art at Utah State University. Whitlock says of the photographic essay presented here : “I’m a member of a unique brotherhood bonded by disillusion, despair, chance, exhaustion, shock, aftershock, wounds, and death. That brotherhood, abandoned and branded, came “home” from Vietnam to fight a second war – an inner war. “I both believe and epitomize the image of returned Vietnam veterans whose war continues. Now after almost two decades, I have found a means of facing that wrenching time of instant transformation from boy to man. These are my photographs born of implausible reality, nightmares, flashbacks, and sleepless nights. “Each photograph is an unearthing of some small corner of my past experi￾ences – combined with symbolic items and hand-colorized silver prints to help interpret a time and prolonged event incomprehensible to both the participants and those who avoided and/or, ignored that war. “I use red, violet, and purple, along with yellow, and the colors of the Vietnam Service Medal. “Consciously I am trying, to be aware of some things, but I think that I have a lot of subconscious pulling out, and I am dwelling on the past experiences that I’m not totally aware of, until that work is pretty well in the making. “The changes have not been easy. The years since have been difficult, and I’m still working on resolving the inner war. The photography is helping.”