Entry Title: " Orchard Beach: The Bronx Riviera"
Name: Wayne Lawrence, United States
Category: Professional, People


Entry Description: I was initially drawn to Orchard Beach because it held the stigma of being one of the worst beaches in New York and I hoped that by engaging this community spiritually I’d be able to create a body of work that would cross cultural boundaries. Fueled in part by my purest memories of my brother David, whose life was tragically cut short before he could realize the fullness of his potential, I’ve tried to capture within the people who’ve allowed me to share their space, the same potential for greatness that I witnessed in him as a youth.

(b.1974) Wayne Lawrence is a St.Kitts born documentary photographer based in Brooklyn, New York. After studying at Santa Monica College and Brooks Institute of Photography, Lawrence relocated to New York to pursue long form documentary essays. His work is a visual diary of his life experiences, and focuses on his relationship to communities otherwise overlooked by mainstream media. Wayne's photographs have been exhibited at the Open Society Institute, The African American Museum of Philadelphia, The Nathan Cummings Foundation, The George and Leah McKenna Museum of African American Art, The Corridor Gallery and The Calumet Gallery and have been published by The New York Times Magazine, The Sunday Times Magazine, Mother Jones, Photo District News, British Journal of Photography, COLORS, Esquire, Essence, Newsweek, Trace, Vibe, XXL and Repubblica XL. His awards include PDN's 30 Emerging Photographers in 2010 and PDN Photo Annual honors in 2010 and 2011 for his Orchard Beach photographs. Wayne's work is included in the permanent collection of the Dusable Museum of African American History, and he is represented by Institute for Artist Management.