A New Jersey photographer who ventured out each night in the weeks after Superstorm Sandy now has his photos on display in a new art exhibit at Brookdale Community College.
More than 60 black and white photos taken by Kevin Burkitt now hang on the wall of the Brookdale Center for the Visual Arts. Burkitt says that he was moved to take the photos so that people would be aware of the destruction from the storm.
“I wanted to be alone, I wanted for people to understand what was going on. I used the cover of darkness to isolate myself from the homeowner,” he says.
The gallery opened Oct. 20. The prints were made possible by a pair of grants from the school and Monmouth County.
“Everyone who comes into this room is fascinated, and in some cases the students have said they're overwhelmed,” says associate art professor Marie Maber.
Burkitt says that he hopes that his images captures the time before the period of rebuilding after the storm.
"I really hope the homeowner understands I'm not trying to show the destruction of their home. I'm trying to document what happened and I’m trying to be artistic about it in a way that we can memorialize this storm,” Burkitt says.
All of the photographs on display are for sale. Proceeds from the sales will go back to Brookdale to help future gallery exhibits.
The gallery is open weekdays from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. through Nov. 22.
For more on the exhibit and an extended interview with Kevin Burkitt, click here.