Watch the video about ENEMIES...

The ENEMIES project is about peace.

I am traveling to past and current conflict zones around the world to photograph people from opposite sides of violent conflicts and record their stories about how they moved beyond the cycle of violence into a place of peace. The goal is to bring together people from opposing sides of conflicts and photograph them together.

This is an art piece to try and understand the nature of peace. I want to document stories of people who have found peace, but I also want to hear as many perspectives as possible. Conflicts are complex issues filled with history and emotion, and peoples' experiences are equally complex. I want to meet people who were active participants in conflicts as well as people who were simply swept up in a horrible situation. I want to meet people who have already gone through a peace process as well as people who have yet to undertake the effort. There are many, many sides to this issue and I want to see as many of them as possible in order to get a fundamental understanding of this very basic human issue.

When all is said and done I plan to exhibit the photographs and their stories in the United Nations in New York City and then in capitals around the world. I will alsopublish a book with the works and the stories that go along with them.

Along the way in this project I am working to help local non-profit peace groups with my work. I have already relied on the collaboration of groups like the US Institute for Peace and the Alternatives to Violence Project to help me find people who are willing to be photographed and talk about their experiences. As a part of my work I am donating photographs and video to the groups I work with so that they can use them to raise awareness and help raise funds to continue their work.

- Nelson Guda