Different backgrounds, different motivations, different dreams – all united by one voice.
Self-portrait by Elliot Ross
one future #ckone is a new photography series from Calvin Klein, spotlighting first-time voters in the U.S. amid the 2020 election. Shot during August and September, it sees some of the country’s most exciting young visual storytellers coming together to produce a collective body of work: the result being a state-of-the-nation portrait, captured through the eyes of a new generation.
The project itself features 11 young adults, shot by seven different photographers, all of whom are based in towns and cities stretched across the country. When it comes to the photographers themselves, each of them share a personal connection to the community and they chose to document, making the collaboration – between subject and gaze – a uniquely intimate one.
For instance, Shan Wallace, a photographer from Baltimore, shot Brandon Woody, a young musician who’s pushing the boundaries of creativity in their hometown. Elsewhere, Miami-based Rose Marie Cromwell photographed young activist Chris Gomez in Coral Springs, Florida, while Elliot Ross – who grew up on a ranch in rural Colorado – spent time with Jace Mitchell, a rancher from Crowheart Wyoming.
Chris by Rose Marie Cromwell
From a young age, I knew I wanted to be a photographer. When I was in the fifth grade, my mom handed me a point and shoot film camera – from then on, I’ve been obsessed with taking photos. I would photograph everything I could: my family, my friends, my neighbourhood.
Eventually I left home to study at the Maryland Institute College of Art. After graduating, I spent time abroad in Cuba and Panama, where I set up after-school arts programmes for kids. So it’s been a winding road to becoming a professional photographer, but now I’m working freelance out of Miami.
Growing up in Seattle, I witnessed the World Trade Organisation Protests in 1999 first-hand. They really opened my eyes to a growing discontent with the way the world worked for a lot of people. Although I’ve varied my work with some more conceptual projects exploring subjective viewpoints, I’ve always had an interest in journalism as a way to tell stories – particularly how mass media can reach people in more immediate ways than art perhaps can. So when Calvin Klein approached me to take part in the project, it seemed a great fit. I think it’s great to help spread this message of getting young people to vote – it’ll
