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Impossible Assignments: Capturing the Conflict, Beauty, and Soul of the World

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Writer and conflict photographer Philip Holsinger shares tales of his extensive travels and experiences around the world as a fully immersive, gonzo-style photojournalist. With the help of his writing partner and art manager Tess Varga, Philip discusses the power of authentic storytelling and how he and Tess are working together to share intimate human stories through various media.

Conversation Hosts

Philip Holsinger

Photojournalist

“I can’t stage a photograph. Because it’s not real. Life itself has to present that moment. So, I’m just waiting for it.”

Philip Holisinger is a photojournalist capturing the conflict, beauty, and soul of the world’s most volatile environments. He has traveled the world documenting the aftermath of the Bosnian genocide, the war on drugs in southeast Asia, and the plight of fringe peoples such as the Nicaraguan Miskito Indians.

As a fully immersed, Gonzo-style journalist, Philip keeps close ties at street-level in the countries where he works, developing deep assets and relationships. He spent three years living in Cite Soleil, Haiti, documenting the social and ethnographic effects of the government’s national development projects.

He recently completed his fourth expedition with the Tusheti Shepherds on their 155-mile migration through Georgia’s Caucasus mountains. Philip now lives in Tennessee as he continues work on the award-winning “We Are Nashville” project, a vast exploration of the city’s identity that began in 2017.

“Ultimately, I don’t want to tell anybody anything.” says Philip, “I want to do my best to be faithful and give them the parts so that they can come experience it with me.”

Philip works primarily through private contract reporting showcasing his work in mixed-media, immersive exhibitions and original works of journalism.

Tess Varga

Writer, Art Consultant, Curator

Tess Varga is a writer, art consultant, and curator living and working in Nashville. Originally from Louisville, KY, Tess has lived in various places across the country including Dallas, Southern California, and Boston.

While earning her bachelor’s degree from Emerson College in Writing, Literature, and Publishing with minors in art history and narrative nonfiction, she spent two summers working at On Center Gallery in Provincetown, Cape Cod. She quickly fell in love with the work and decided she wanted to continue working as an advocate for artists. Tess finished her degree in London while researching and writing about London’s street art scene for Graffik Gallery.

In 2020, she settled in Nashville and began working as artist manager and art consultant at Chauvet Arts. Tess has now partnered with photojournalist Philip Holsinger as his writing assistant, editor, and art manager.