To understand how relevant the demand for indoor farming services is, it is necessary to analyze relevant information about this area. It was found that there are nearly 1000 indoor farms in the UAE today (HortiDaily, 2022). Thus, data on the popularity of this type of business, as well as the degree of potential development, were considered.
Demographics (age, gender, geographical location, and income)
For any business, it is essential to be sure of the readiness of customers to buy the product. Thus, it was defined that the age of customers ranges from 18 to 60, however, adults are more likely to purchase indoor farming production (Howson, 2019). There is no prevalence in gender and geographical location, however, individuals with middle or high income are expected to buy chosen production.
Likelihood to buy the service
The likelihood of buying the service may be defined by the data, indicating the popularity of the business. Thus, the number of indoor farms in the UAE has been increased by nearly 500 % in the last 20 years (Takeshima et al. 2019). Besides, nearly 85 % of UAE residents heard about vertical farms production (Reddy et al. 2021). Thereby, the product is popular in the chosen country, which constitutes a likelihood to buy the service.
Willingness to pay for the service
There are many people in the UAE with high incomes and demand for farming production. Thereby, almost 70% of residents would pay for the production (FastCompany, 2022). It is formulated by the moderate prices and the understanding of the product’s quality.
Type of Distribution Channel
Talking about the distribution channel, most of the customers are expected the production to be sold in shops. However, some part of the clients claimed that they are ready to receive production via delivery.
HortiDaily. (2022). How the UAE grew from 50 to 1000 hydroponic farms. Web.
Howson, P. (2019). The business year: Sharjah 2020. The Business Year.
Reddy, A. N. (2021). Intelligent manufacturing and energy sustainability. Springer Nature.
Takeshima, H., Joshi, & Kumar, P. (2019). Protected agriculture, precision agriculture, and vertical farming: Brief reviews of issues in the literature focusing on the developing region in Asia. Intl Food Policy Res Inst.
Indoor farming in the UAE is an alternative method to growing crops on a vertical platform. This method is ditching the traditional ways of farming on the land. UAE lacks the most important component of farming, i.e., water; vertical indoor farming has been a blessing for the Middle East (Ghonima, 2021). The process is season less, but vertical farming is the most expensive form of agriculture. The process costs six to ten times more than the greenhouse farming method. Indoor farming requires appropriate light settings and proper fertilizers for healthy growth. Millennials are growing up to be health freaks; promotional activities like social media promotion and influencer marketing can be an important promotion component. Indoor farming is an excellent way to bring in fresh and healthy food in areas where growing conditions are unsuitable. But, it is very important to generate profit in the sector to continue the operations.
Market Segmentation
Services and products offered by local leaves might be attractive for groups of clients who have specific needs. First, these include young people looking for innovative solutions and products associated with them. Indoor farming is a technological method that might be attractive to a new generation because of its unique nature. The second segment is comprised of customers interested in fresh, healthy, and locally produced products that might be delivered in comparatively short terms. For this reason, Local Leaves should focus its promotional efforts on these market segments. It can also use various types of delivery, such as on-demand delivery (60% of industry sales), which can be performed by using the app, scheduled (20%), also made by using the application, and self-pickup (20%), or visiting local supermarkets (Neiva, Deggau & Andrade Guerra, 2020). Focusing on these segments and delivery models, it is possible to attain success and ensure a stable level of sales and income, which is vital for the development of the company.
Promotional activities
Local Leaves needs to be promoted through online mediums as it enables mass communication. Buzz marketing schemes can be developed in order to create buzz about the technique and its growing presence. Social media platforms like Instagram, snap chat, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and TikTok as well can increase awareness of the importance of indoor farming in the UAE (Weidner et al., 2022). As indoor farming is expensive, most of the capital will go into the farming process; thus, low-cost promotional activities are the most suitable forms to promote indoor farming in the UAE. Some low-cost promotional activities include social media advertisements, public relations, influencer marketing, collaborations, word of mouth marketing and email marketing.
Social Media Platforms: Local Leaves can be promoted by running small advertisements on YouTube videos and focusing on pay per click advertisements. Adding to that, the delivery service, health benefits, and availability of Local Leaves products can be advertised on all social media platforms to help the company get the recognition it needs in a short period of time. Instagram and Facebook advertisements enable companies to add more insight on what they aim to achieve from this promotion. Thus, helping companies reach their target customers faster.
Collaborations and sponsorship: A beneficial and low-cost promotional method could involve collaborating with universities and schools in Sharjah. Through this collaboration, students will be given a field trip to the farms in order to better understand the process behind vertical farming and its assistance to our health and planet. As students learn closely about the company, they will be more eager to talk to their parents about it or, in the case of university students, have them to switch buying vegetables, fruits, and herbs from markets outside and focus on Local Leaves. Adding to that, the company may also use sponsorship opportunities to reach a wider audience. That is to say, offer sponsorship to different environmental groups and events within the Emirates and most specifically Sharjah. An example of that would be having Local Leaves sponsor Friday Markets and on-campus environmental friendly events. It’s on campus event can be held in collaboration with the sustainability club, where Local Leaves will be sponsoring the event through supplying the club with organic produce for the event. It is important to note that not all sponsorships have to be of a high expense, as some would include an exchange of “promotional benefits” or products.
Public relation: PR plays a critical role in creating a brand. It is essential to communicate about the brand and show its positive effect on the people and the environment. Showing the products and services in a positive light can attract potential customers to the market.
Influencer marketing: Social media has proved to be an effective tool of promotion in today’s world, where everyone has a social life and spends hours on social media platforms. Local Leaves can be successfully advertised through bloggers and influencers. Paid and barter campaigns can be run to ensure maximum reach. PR packages such as packs of fruit and vegetables can be delivered to a large-scale of influencers and celebrities within the Emirates who have a large influence on the public.
Word of mouth marketing: Word of mouth can prove to be the most inexpensive and the most effective tool in product promotion.
Email marketing: commercial messages can be sent to potential customers who may be interested in the business but are not aware of the brand.
Annual Marketing budget
A marketing budget can only be created based on the company’s revenue. Local Leaves allocates approximately six to twelve percent of their revenue to the marketing activities annually. A marketing budget includes the cost of paid advertisements, employing new marketing staff, and making software for marketing automation. A marketing budget helps the company align its marketing expenses with the business goals. It helps identify the spending money on campaigns that guarantee the largest return.
Local Leaves has selected the low-cost promotions of their products and services.
The annual marketing budget can be designed based on its chosen marketing tools.
The company can spend over 36,000 AED on influencer marketing, including 4-5 large scale influencers. Instagram and TikTok marketing for 360,000+ views each, the company has to invest an amount of 60,000 AED. Pay per click marketing and advertisement on YouTube will cost 16,000 AED for 20,000+ clicks. Word of mouth marketing is free. Indoor farming in the UAE can spend around 136,000 AED on marketing annually.
Distribution and sales
The distribution and sales of indoor farming highly depend on on-time delivery. Transportation plays a vital role in the distribution and delivery of items. An external distribution channel can be used in order to deliver the products. It can do both B2B and B2C businesses. The company can tie up with different supermarkets and retail stores and make their products available there; this will enhance the brand awareness and let the consumer compare and choose between the different products already available in the market.
The company can also develop its application for the delivery of the products and can tie-up with different grocery and vegetable delivery apps to make it available to the consumer. Availability on a variety of platforms can enhance sales and bring in revenue. It will also help in building products and brand awareness.
Sales Strategy and Related Issues
Target market selection
Indoor marketing in the UAE can target both the B2B and B2C industry segments. Both male and female millennials are into healthy and sustainable products and services. They prefer to eat something safe and environmentally friendly (Al Ali & Ahmad, 2020). The business can target Young adults as their consumers. The industry analysis proves that millennials based in the UAE have higher incomes and are also interested in the consumption of healthy food. According to the survey, around 83% of the adults in the UAE are ready to pay a relatively higher price for healthy food. (Neiva, Deggau & Andrade Guerra, 2020).
The company’s marketing strategy is mainly based on the use of the internet. Young adults tend to spend time online and order their food online to avoid the hassle. Around 78% of people aged 25 to 35 tend to shop online. A healthy lifestyle plays a vital role in the well-being of an individual. Health awareness programs such as the ” Nutrition Labeling Policy” that aims to increase the consumer’s awareness can help promote the brand more effectively and attract the consumers to a better and sustainable future.
Industry Analysis
At the moment, the agricultural sector in the UAE continues to evolve. The country imports a significant number of products, making it one of the most promising agriculture markets in the Gulf reason (“Agriculture and animal wealth,” n.d.). The constantly growing demand for different high-quality products introduces numerous opportunities for other companies to evolve. Furthermore, the state focuses on promoting organic farming incentives. It has 34 farms supplying its products to different cities. For this reason, the current industry’s state is beneficial for the development of projects such as Local Leaves. At the same time, several sustainable programs and incentives would support the company. These include Green Economy for Sustainable Development incentive, focusing on creating long-term development and state’s evolution (“UAE sustainability initiatives,” 2021). In such a way, the current situation in the country and its economy is favorable for the brand and can support its fast evolution.
Ghonima, O. (2021). Mitigating Imported Vegetable Dependency in the United Arab Emirates through Indoor Farms: The Financial and Environmental Impact (Doctoral dissertation, Harvard University). Web.
One of the major global objectives for global sustainable development is food production and nutrition. Entomo is a Canadian company founded by South African brothers that produces cricked-based foods to the local market (Paquin, Sushko & Lloyd, 2022). Although Entomo operates within a competitive market, one of its strengths is the low production cost, accomplished by using the innovative farming method that significantly reduces investment in labor (Paquin, Sushko & Lloyd, 2022). Another apparent strength is using a virus-resistant species, which prevents the company from substantial losses. Additionally, Entomo not only farms crickets but produces and markets them, and engages directly with the consumers (Paquin, Sushko & Lloyd, 2022). Such an approach contributes to improved control over the company’s development and ensures that Entomo can incorporate customers’ feedback for enhancement.
However, Entomo also displays several weaknesses that might affect the company’s growth. Foremost, the company receives only 20% of its income from business-to-consumer channel, while 80% comes from business-to-business deals (Paquin, Sushko & Lloyd, 2022). As a result, the company gets smaller revenue because major deals include selling cheaper raw materials, while selling expensive consumer-packaged products (CPGs) constitutes a small part of the business. Another weakness relates to a lack of a “unified marketing strategy” (Paquin, Sushko & Lloyd, 2022, p. 4). Eventually, Entomo has not been successful in acquiring new customers despite social media and website engagement.
Nonetheless, there are significant opportunities for Entomo’s growth in the future. First, the company can increase the sales of CPGs through a collaboration with retail chains. In such a way, Entomo can reach new customers and increase its revenue by focusing on processed food production. Hence, the company might benefit from enhancing its marketing strategy through collaboration with successful marketing agencies. In addition, the company can produce food supplements from crickets as they contain protein, essential vitamins, and minerals.
The threats for Entomo refer to the competitiveness in the market. In particular, companies such as Aspire, Wilder Harrier, Naak, Bite Snacks, and Landish Foods offer insect-based protein products (Paquin, Sushko & Lloyd, 2022). Furthermore, there is a threat from large food corporations that might acquire innovative protein for their products. As international corporations are integrated into the existing retail and are better known among consumers, they can hinder the growth of such businesses as Entomo’s CPG sales.
Reference
Paquin, R., Sushko, I., & Lloyd, S. (2022). Entomo farms: Are Canadians ready to eat insects? Ivey Business School Foundation.
Natureview is facing a rather daunting challenge ever since its inception in 1989. The farm’s attempt to maintain its profitability saw the hiring of Jim Wagner as chief financial officer whose central role was to formulate and implement strategies that would ensure continued growth in profits.
It is in this regard that Wagner’s recommendation for an equity infusion from a venture capital to help fund strategic plans sailed through the board meeting unopposed. Now, the venture capital firm wants to withdraw its cash investments from Natureview.
To counter the potentially devastating financial blow about to be dealt on Natureview, the management has limited options: to find another investor or put itself up for acquisition (Fleming, 2007). The management preferred the second option and that meant that Natureview had to increase its revenues in order to achieve the highest possible valuation.
It is in this regard that Wagner advised the management to increase the firm’s revenues from $13 million to $20 million before the end of 2001 (Fleming, 2007). The first option was not preferred because finding an alternative investor would be difficult unless the venture capital firm cashed out first (Fleming, 2007). This would leave Natureview in a critical position.
Problem Analysis
Natureview Farm is facing imminent insolvency should the venture capital firm cash out. Although Natureview has been realizing increased profits every year, the decision to enlist a venture capital firm to finance its strategic programs is likely to plunge it into financial abyss.
To avoid this problem, the management has to find ways and means of increasing its revenues so as to achieve the highest possible valuation as it prepares for takeover. Thus, a $7 million increase is required in order to put the farm firmly on track (Fleming, 2007).
This problem was brought about by the inappropriate strategies that were used to diversify Natureview’s sales. The farm’s chief financial officer blundered by outsourcing finance to fund strategic investments. Apparently, these strategic investments have not yielded enough revenues to enable the farm stand on its own feet. Instead, they have resulted into financial dependency on the venture capital firm.
Natureview Farm management is sharply divided on the marketing strategies to be implemented. The bone of contention revolves around the option of venturing into supermarkets as a way of increasing sales. Whereas the option has great potential in boosting sales, it would shake Natureview to its very core as a breach of confidence with the long-time business partners, the retailers (Fleming, 2007).
Natureview’s condition was precipitated by stiff competition from other organic food manufacturers. The natural foods market was concentrated by four top competitors: Dannon, Yoplait, Breyers and Columbo (Fleming, 2007). The four competing companies dominated a fair share of the market. This could have slowed down the rate of growth of the profits for Natureview.
Another cause for the declining sales could have been the change in consumer tastes and preferences. Among the factors considered by customers before buying yoghurt included package type, flavor, taste, and price among others (Fleming, 2007).
It was observed that 6 oz and 8 oz yoghurt cups were the most popular product sizes, followed by multipacks consisting of 4 oz cup servings (Fleming, 2007). Natureview Farm management may have failed to notice the changes in tastes and preferences of the customers and adjust accordingly.
Weather changes could also have impacted on Natureview’s sales. There are some weather patterns that do not favor the consumption of yoghurt, especially the cold seasons. During such seasons, customers would prefer hot drinks rather than have yoghurt.
Weather changes could have pushed Natureview to venture into other investments in order to raise their sales. Meeting the challenges associated with new business ventures may have had a far-reaching impact on the farm’s financial position. This must have forced the management to resort to external financing.
To compete favorably with the four top firms, Natureview should consider improving on the quality of their yoghurt products in order to make them more appealing to customers. The management could also embark on an extensive marketing campaign targeting all sections of the society. Repackaging of their brands is also another viable alternative.
Stiff competition and changes in consumer tastes and preferences played a major role in pushing Natureview into a financial dependency due to insufficient profits. Therefore, the strategic plans put in place by Wagner could not produce enough finance to cover the costs.
That is why cash out by the venture capital firm would sound a death knell for Natureview Farm. In trying to adapt to the changes in customer preferences, the farm may have encountered more expenditure, hence lessening their profit margins.
Concerning the changes in consumer tastes and preferences, Natureview should conduct regular market research to establish current trends on the market. Information gained from these studies is very crucial as it would help the manufacturers create yoghurt brands that meet the changing consumer tastes and preferences. As for weather changes, Natureview could consider expanding their production scope to include hot drinks suitable for cold weather conditions.
However, the decision to use supermarkets as outlets of the products received strong resistance from some members of the management team. This was informed by the CEO’s assertion that they should keep in mind the role played by their distribution agents, who have been the retailers (Fleming, 2007).
Some members, like Christine Walker, could not come to terms with the possible repercussions of such a move. Christine Walker wonders whether such a cause of action would result into price concessions, and worse still whether the retailers would feel betrayed and pull yoghurt products from Natureview off their shelves (Fleming, 2007).
Action Plan
The chief goal of the plan to bail out Natureview Farm is to raise the $20 million revenue sales needed to put the farm in a better financial position in preparation for acquisition. In addition to this, the farm needs to keep up with its competitors and formulate appropriate policies that would safeguard it from the ravages of a concentrated market. Most importantly, Natureview Farm must struggle to remain solvent.
In order to achieve these goals, three possible approaches may be considered. The first option is to expand six SKUs of the 8 oz product line into selected supermarket regions (Fleming, 2007). This is because the 8 oz yoghurt cups represent the largest dollar and unit share and thus has a significant revenue potential.
Secondly, there are other natural foods companies that have successfully expanded into supermarket channels and experienced a 200% revenue increase within the first two years (Fleming, 2007). Thirdly, Natureview would enjoy the first-mover advantage since no other natural foods farm had ventured into supermarkets.
The second approach is to expand four SKUs of the 32 oz nationally. This option is informed by three reasons. One, the 32 oz cups are currently generating an above-average gross profit margin for Natureview Farm (Fleming, 2007).
This is in spite of their representation of a smaller dollar and unit share of the yoghurt market. Two, there is less competition on the 32 oz yoghurt package. This would be further ameliorated by the fact that Natureview products have a longer shelf life than most of their competitors.
This puts Natureview at a strong competitive advantage. Lastly, it would enjoy lower promotional expenses since the 32 oz cups are promoted only twice in a year. It would lessen production costs and hence reduce dependency on external sources of finance. Reduction in operating expenses translates into increased profits.
The third approach is to introduce two SKUs of a children’s multi-pack into the natural foods channel – and discard the supermarket options (Fleming, 2007). This is informed by various reasons. First, Natureview already has strong relationships with the leading natural food retailers.
Entry into the supermarket arena would compromise this strong solid base. Yoghurt is a source of both revenue and profits to the retailers. Second, Natureview’s all-natural ingredients are a perfect base for launching the children multi-pack products.
Third, children’s multi-pack has an attractive financial potential with the projected yearly revenue for the two multi-pack SKUs approximated at 10% of the natural food dollar category sales (Fleming, 2007).
The fast rate of growth of the natural foods channel will further boost yoghurt sales. This is especially important since Natureview is already venturing into some new products, as stated earlier in this paper. Furthermore, industry market research has shown that that the projected unit growths CAGR of yoghurt in the natural foods channel is 15% (Fleming, 2007).
In general, these steps will help Natureview Farm achieve its objectives, which include staying financially afloat as well as providing quality products to its customers (Fleming, 2007). The farm will also be able to fulfill its mission of financial independence.
However, these plans are, to some extent, fraught with risks. The greatest risk is unprecedented losses occurring as a result of unexpected competition from other firms. This is because supermarkets are already stocked with alternative products from other companies.
A good example of such products is soft drinks from the coca cola company. Therefore, the expansion of six SKUs of the 8 oz cups into supermarkets should be done with a lot of care. Research needs to be conducted in order to establish the viability of this action.
The expansion of the four SKUs of the 32 oz nationally could lead into further costs that would reduce the anticipated profit margins. Natureview would need to find ways of minimizing costs in order to attain financial freedom. Extensive marketing procedures required for this move could further dent the farm’s financial outlook.
Natureview would consider liaising with nationwide distributors who also engage in marketing promotions. The fast growth of natural foods channels may be suddenly checked by unforeseen economic problems such as inflation and recession. Natureview Farm needs to develop a solid financial base, which would act as a sure back up should economic disasters strike.
Finally, the expansion of the six SKUs of the 8 oz cups would be the best option since it would rake in the highest anticipated incremental retail unit sales of $35 million (Fleming, 2007).
Reference
Fleming, K. M. (2007). Natureview Farm. Brief Cases No. 2073. Harvard: Harvard Business Publishing.
One way to incorporate farm-to-table principles into running supply chains would be creating an agricultural collection center to collect products from the local farmers and then distribute them through supermarkets, depending on the demand. This approach can definitely offer benefits due to the economy of scale (Tuqa et al., 2019). However, direct individual agreements with local farmers may prove more feasible when running just several supermarkets, although that would require more organizational work. The obvious benefit of incorporating farm-to-table principles is their potential to straighten the supply chain, thus reducing the logistical costs in the goods pricing. Apart from that, the environmentalist sentiment and the desire to support local farmers both contribute to the popular demand for local products. A potential risk is that small farms may be unable to provide a steady supply of the necessary magnitude or adhere to the same standards of quality.
In order for the supermarket to implement the endeavor, the first order of business is to get a clear picture of what local farms produce. Experience suggests that farm-to-table principles may often help find a new, cheaper supplier for the goods that used to be imported from further away (Tuqa et al., 2019). Regular communication with the farmers is necessary to make reasonable estimations of how much of which products they are going to be able to provide. The main data defining whether to implement farm-to-table principles will include the range of products that the farmers can provide, the volume compared to the current suppliers, and the average price compared to the current suppliers. Should the gain based on these metrics be significant enough, the organizational work of establishing direct connections with individual farm holds may be worth trying.
Reference
Tuqa, A., Lobendann, K., & Bainivalu, S. (2018). Farm-to-table via collection centers in Fiji. In Experience capitalization: Resilience and productivity in the Pacific (pp. 58-61). Technical Centre for Agricultural and Rural Cooperation.
The Photo League was initiated as a radical Film and Photo league whereby its main artistic focus was of an aesthetic character and without much relevance to politics. The Film and Photo league collapsed due to a conflict concerning the integration of political influence into their art also due to the fact that it failed to cover the violent west coast strikes of 1934. The disagreement regarding the focus of the Film and Photo league served as the basis for the emergence of The Photo League in 1936 (Raeburn 52).
The Photo League was founded by Sol Libsohn and Sid Grossman, and its main purpose was to uncovering people’s relationships and interactions, depict various institutions, buildings, and social activities and emphasize the social and political struggles. The works of the Photo League artists did not require any verbal explanation for the viewers to understand the story behind them. It is important to indicate that many individuals of that period suffered from high levels of unemployment and poverty during the depression era. The gap between the rich and the poor increased. This way, the photographers served as trustworthy educators and attention raisers, revealing the hidden and unknown sides of the social and political reality.
The Photo League expanded rapidly to become an institution for teaching photography. The students there were taught basics in photography, but mainly they were encouraged to go to the streets with their cameras and take real-time photographs (Hulu).
Later, many renowned successful photographers joined the League; among them was Eliot Elisofon, the photographer with a common perception of the camera as a visual expression unit. As a result, classic photography was achieved, which portrayed the state in which citizens were living in and how laborers were exploited. Child labour is also portrayed and how residents lived in congested neighbour hoods (Raeburn 92). Although the main picture was the dire living conditions that citizens suffered from the depression era, evidence of industrialization and diversity are also present. The league also acted as a social centre hosting dances, and fund-raising parties (Hulu).
Young members were eager to learn skills and interact with famous photographers. The well-known photographers were full of experience and desired to share their skills and knowledge with the younger generation. The Photo League membership drained in 1952 after it was listed by the US Attorney-General as a subversive organisation. Photos of the Photo League include “Elks Parade” (1939) where a building is overcrowded. Other examples are “Butterfly Boy” (1949), ”Girl in a Mirror” by Sonia Handleman Meyer, “St. Mark’s Church”, “Skywriting Spiral” by Berenice Abbott.
At the same time, the Farm Security Administration (FSA) photographers focused on agriculture and the hardships that workers underwent in the farms during the depression era. The main goal of the FSA was to demonstrate the conditions and difficulties simple farm workers were going through at that time (Raeburn 11). The FSA aimed at bringing a picture of how life was in the farm. Stryker hired the likes of Dorothea Lange, John Vachon, Carl Mydans and Gordon Parks.
Unlike in the Photo League where members targeted the city life and covered the specificity of life in Harlem, Stryker sent his crew to the fields and farm, and as the photos came in, he worked to get them published (Hulu). The Photo League displayed photos from FSA in their galleries. Many newspapers all around the USA were using photos from the FSA to display conditions and the life the individuals were going through during the era.
The only main difference is that the Photo League aimed at documenting the urban life while the FSA aimed at documenting rural lifestyle. It is essential to point out that the FSA was in the forefront in showing the importance or usefulness of agriculture towards the development and expansion of the American economy. Examples of photos from the FSA include the photos by Dorothea Lange such as “Woman of the High Plains “If you Die, You’re Dead that’s All”. This picture is a good evidence of the devastating situations that people in the fields faced. Other works include “Fleeing a Dust Storm”, “Cimarron County”, “OK” by Arthur Rothstein.
The Photo League and the Harlem Document
It is important to point out that the Harlem Document was created by Aaron Siskind in order to depict the life in Harlem during the great depression era. Harlem is situated in New York City and is a large neighbourhood in the Upper Manhattan (Hulu). In the era of the Great Depression Harlem was inhabited mainly by the African American community. At that time Harlem was more of an urban slum.
The main intention of the Harlem Document was to create a clear picture of how residents faced hardships. For example, living conditions were so poor that sometimes as many as four families had to use one washroom. Public utilities such as playgrounds for children were unavailable; as a result, children used the public roads as play areas. In this document Harlem is portrayed as a miserable place which was overcrowded and lacked basic human utilities. The Harlem Document which was composed of the photographs by Aaron Siskind also seems to reflect the aspect of controversy (Raeburn 72).
According to a photographic historian Maurice Berger, there is a great sense of controversy regarding the Harlem Document. Maurice Berger argues that the Harlem Document reinforced racial stereotypes emphasizing Harlem’s crime and poverty. Berger notes that the diversity of social community would have been a better focus for the white photographers. At the same time, the photographs taken in Harlem do not only reflect poverty and crime, they vividly portray a lot of hope and transcendence (Hulu).
Even though there was a great effect of poverty people still worked hard and there is also a great evidence of hope for better. For example, in the untitled photo by Aaron Siskind, the Gift of Dr.Robert L. and Chitranee Drapkin one can actually see hope in the people’s faces. In the Looks (a renowned and influential magazine of that time) photographs of Harlem’s children playing, voluntary associations, leisure activities are very well displayed. Yet, those of Harlem businesses and militancy are absent.
This is one of the evidences of the controversy surrounding the Harlem Document. Besides, Siskind also included photos of buildings and architecture into his Harlem Document showing the influence of industrialization which coupled with civilization (Hulu). Moreover, among the individuals portrayed in Harlem Document there are many decent and hardworking people, so not only poverty and crime are emphasized. On the opposite, adding images of various groups of people living in Harlem Siskind demonstrated its diversity and its multiple dimensions.
Works Cited
Hulu. Ordinary Miracles The Photo Leagues New York _ Ordinary Miracles The Photo Leagues New York. 2014. Web.
Raeburn, John. Staggering Revolution. Chicago: University of Illinois Press, 2006. Print.