Goodnight Raleigh | a look at the art, architecture, history, and people of the city at night

Goodnight Raleigh and the State Fair

by Sid Fowler in Community, Random Gems on 11/6/2009
4 Comments

John Morris and Sid Fowler

â€œCarnival is a pageant without footlights and without a division into performers and spectators.â€ – Mikhail Bakhtin.

Photo by John Morris

While the midway of the 21st century bears little resemblance to the Medieval festivities Bakhtin focused on in his work, the openness from conventional norms and dissolution of social hierarchy on which he focused still seem to hold sway within the fairgrounds every Autumn. By the time people have wandered past the tents, the agricultural exhibits, and stumbled down into the dizzying lights and noise of the midway, something restrictive has been left behind.

Photo by Rocio Lluch

For someone who almost exclusively photographs people, the carnival is both challenging and rewarding. This wonderful energy permeates the crowd, and while taking intimate portraits is difficult, and candid shots near impossible with the shifting crowd and variegated lights, people who would often treat you with suspicion or tell you get stuffed will gladly pose and smile. I love the mix of people, too. While most events provide a somewhat narrow slice of our nation, the fair has it all; young, old, families, criminals, lovers, saints, all races and nationalities.

I think the carnival atmosphere is a very romantic place as well. Gangs of teenagers roam the midway, looking for hook ups. Young lovers sparkle, old couples find the time to walk hand in hand for the first time in months.

Perhaps it’s cultural â€“ even the romance in Charlotte’s Web centers on the carnival â€“ but I think there’s something deeper than that at play.

This year, though, I wasn’t photographing alone. John Morris joined me for the evening, and Goodnight Raleigh’s newest contributors Sarah Mascarah and Rocio Lluch went and shot some amazing stuff.

Photo by Rocio Lluch

These people were too beautiful

This guy was actually really friendly, even though he's kind of giving me the eye in this shot

A bear of truly enormous proportions

Officer Porter, keeping the peace

The Guesser

Early halloween costume?

Family

Every year, when the fireworks start going off, I tell myself I won’t frantically around taking portraits of people in front of the fireworks, that it’s cliche and I should avoid it. Then every year, about 30 seconds into them, I take off running down the midway, tapping people on the shoulder and saying “excuse me, could I please get a portrait of you guys with the fireworks in the background.”