Doe Branch Ink

Looking forward to this workshop with my long-time buddy and work partner, Charlie Thompson, in an absolutely stunning location. Not to mention that Jim and Deborah are the best hosts one can ask for. 

A Week of Images, Ideas, and Inspiration

Sunday June 12th to Saturday June 18th - register now!

We're pleased to announce that long-time collaborators Rob Amberg and Charlie Thompson—with deference to Agee & Evans and other documentary teams who have worked to bring stories to light—will be at Doe Branch Ink to lead a workshop on documentary fieldwork. There are a few spaces left, so be sure to claim your spot today.

Not so much a technical workshop as a discussion on the documentary fieldwork process, Amberg and Thompson will lead discussions about how to conceive and plan projects, meet and cultivate collaborations with interlocutors in the field, collaborate with other artists without coming to blows(!), and take your work to larger audiences as articles, books, exhibits, and more. 

Rob and Charlie encourage participants to bring your own ideas and projects to the workshop, and they'll ensure plenty of time for reflection and deepening your work. They plan to workshop their own project in progress: a retrospective on their 30 years of work in rural America, on farm advocacy and the culture of agriculture, including the portion of their work sponsored by Willie Nelson's FarmAid.  

They'll also organize field trips to local sites, photo talks, film screenings, and focused discussions of the leaders’  work will make for a full and rewarding week. You can read more about their workshop and our other spring / summer offerings at our new website.

About the Artists
Rob Amberg is an award-winning photographer and writer who has made Madison County, NC his adopted home for going on four decades. His books include Sodom Laurel Album and The New Road: I-26 and the Footprint of Progress in Appalachia. His photographs are part of the permanent collection of the David M. Rubenstein Rare Book and Manuscript Library at Duke University. 

Charlie Thompson, a writer, filmmaker, and photographer is a member of the Anthropology Department at Duke University. His most recent books include Border Odyssey: Travels along the US/Mexican Divide, an ethnography and memoir about his 2,000 mile journey through the borderlands, and Spirits of Just Men:  Mountaineers, Liquor Bosses and Lawmen in the Moonshine Capital of the World, an inquiry into his ancestors' roots in Franklin County, Virginia.  

Yours,

Deborah and Jim