Women of Ohio

See a list of all the winners here.

The people in the photograph “Live Stream” were gathered for a Women’s Day demonstration in 2020. It was a joy to witness them representing the unity, vitality and brilliance of their communities in downtown Columbus, Ohio. 

-Marcus Jackson

What can we say about this fascinating photograph? Part of its appeal is how much you find in the photograph the harder you look, with many feminine-presenting people. The photograph is dominated by the livestreaming in the foreground, the stylish way that the person at the front of the photograph holds the phone whilst lifting a defiant fist, as well as the intrigue of the person stood next to them. What is being seen to elicit such a reaction? Their differing reactions are interesting too as one regards the camera screen calmly, while the other reacts with surprise! They are surely united in their togetherness however. Beyond this powerful moment, there are more figures to be found, some staring intently towards the camera and others looking away, but all united.

This is a photograph that demands to be blown up so that we can study the detail. It has as much drama as the large visions of the old masters, those huge canvases featuring scenes from history or legend, and it is just as mythic. The reason that the photograph was the winner is because it fulfills the brief of representing an Ohio woman, but it also expands it by representing a collective united in purpose. The innovative way that it approaches the subject reminds us of the power and purpose that women have, how they have often had to stand up for their rights and the rights of others. Women like these can change the world.

Marcus Jackson lives with his wife and child in Columbus, Ohio, and he was born and raised in Toledo, Ohio. After earning his BA at the University of Toledo, he continued his studies in NYU’s graduate creative writing program and as a Cave Canem fellow. He is a poet and a photographer. His debut full-length collection of poems, entitled Neighborhood Register, was released in 2011, and his second book-length collection, Pardon My Heart, was published by TriQuarterly Books/Northwestern University Press in 2018.

See Instagram: @poetmarcusjackson