RE LOG Fall 2017

10 Ransom Everglades LOG FALL 2017 “Obviously, the values of my mother and father are values that I’ve taken on,” he said. “In some ways, the world has caught up with us. Unfortunately, in some ways, it hasn’t.” – Greenfield-Sanders extend the effort into a film and, for that effort – Lou Reed: Rock and Roll Heart – Greenfield-Sanders earned a Grammy Award. “I would never,” Greenfield-Sanders said, “have imagined that would have happened.” He also found himself with a new title: photographer-filmmaker. That career shift, and a conversation with Nobel Laureate Toni Morrison, led Greenfield-Sanders to the most important project of his career. An inspiration from Toni Morrison Morrison proposed that she and Greenfield-Sanders combine on a book on black opera divas. That didn’t pan out, but it got him thinking. The resulting idea united his two professional passions – photography and filmmaking – while also bringing his career full circle, back to the beginning of his artistic inspiration. “It was a spark,” he recalled. “I started thinking about African-American talent in general, how that talent doesn’t always get exposed.” Greenfield-Sanders decided he would expose it, through both his portraits and more recent filmmaking expertise. “I thought of it as my portraits come to life,” he said. Morrison became one of the first subjects in 2008 for “The Black List,” which was followed by the “The Latino List,” “The Out List,” “The Boomer List,” “The Women’s List” and “The Trans List.” With the incisive, powerful works, Greenfield-Sanders touched a societal nerve. The documentaries ap- peared on HBO and PBS, and the portraits have been exhibited throughout the nation. In 2015, he received the Pratt Institute Legends Award, annually granted to icons in the worlds of art and design. Last spring, he received the Ransom Everglades Founders’ Alumni Award for Distinguished Service to the Community. “My mother is a pioneer,” Greenfield-Sanders said. “I don’t think I’m a pioneer; I’m more of a cultural historian. I’m trying to surf the Zeitgeist.” He’s working on the next “List” installment: “The Immigrant List.” “Obviously, the values of my mother and father are values that I’ve taken on,” he said. “In some ways, the world has caught up with us. Unfortunately, in some ways, it hasn’t.” Tennis legend Serena Williams