Whitney Dafoe
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I live in the Bay Area. I have been in love with photography ever since I took a darkroom class in high school in 1998. But I have always been driven by a strong vision and sense of purpose behind the act of creation. I have been to all 50 states photographing and exploring (not intentionally, it just happened), and I have travelled to many countries world wide without my camera to learn and experience.

I don't think of myself as any one kind of photographer, I like being open to the subject and exploring new ways of framing and communicating. I strive to make honest images that inform and inspire. As Leonard Cohen said, "I'm just a kid with a crazy dream".

I am currently fighting a serious neuro immune illness called Chronic Fatigue Syndrome/Myalgic Encephalomyelitis (ME/CFS). It has taken a slow and steady toll on my life since 2004 when I was 21 and I am now completely bedridden. There is no known cure. I struggle to continue my creative endeavors, and remain hopeful and inspired despite the desolate physical circumstances. I can no longer make the kinds of images you see on this site though I have continued to photograph as much as I can when I'm well enough and with the severely limited subject matter I have available.

 
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Whitney Dafoe in a wheel chair within a darkend room, hunched over near a sunny window, with tress and foliage outside.

The Living Death, 2010-Present Day

I'm happy to announce that my now 13 year ongoing project starting in 2010 and continuing today, called "The Living Death" photographing my life with moderate and then severe ME/CFS has won numerous awards for various select series from this enormous body of work. You can click on each of the awards to see the winning series.
One of the images from this project will also be part of the A Smith Gallery's, “Portraits”, Book and Exhibition, February, 2023. The winning image is shown above.
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Working as an intern for the Palo Alto Weekly

I'm working as an intern for the Palo Alto Weekly Newspaper right now. Aside from the headshots, it's a lot of fun, I get access to make portraits of people in intimate settings that are hard to get to normally. I could definitely see myself doing this for a living though I think I may want more gunfire to duck from.
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