YEAR ZERO: Lockdown Journal

A riveting photo journal documenting the pandemic by notable and noteworthy actor Richard Edson.

“I began the YEAR ZERO LOCKDOWN JOURNAL on March 20, 2020, the first day of the Los Angeles lockdown. I ended it a year later March 19th, 2021."

"On the first day of lock down I took my bicycle and camera and rode through the empty, silent streets of Los Angeles. Everything looked the same, but everything was completely different. I took photos and came back and wrote about it. And I kept it up for next twelve months, through our personal and collective isolation, through the ups and downs of the pandemic, the slow, halting opening of society, the politicization of the virus, the George Floyd protests, the elections, the Stop-the-Steal movement, and the storming of the Capital. Covid-19 was beyond anything we thought possible or could even imagine. It’s the stuff of science fiction and dystopian nightmares. But the writers and doomsayers were right. And here we are. Each of us who have lived through Year Zero have our own stories to tell. This, in photographs and texts, is mine."

Richard Edson has been acting in films for over 30 years. His acting career began in 1985 when he starred in Jim Jarmusch's, STRANGER THAN PARADISE, Oliver Stone's, PLATOON, Spike Lee's, DO THE RIGHT THING, FERRIS BUELLER'S DAY OFF, GOOD MORNING VIETNAM, John Sayles', SUNSHINE STATE, STARSKY & HUTCH, the Polish Brother's, THE ASTRONAUT FARMER, Wim Wender's, THE LAND OF PLENTY, COLUMBUS DAY and Rob Zombie’s 3 FROM HELL.

As a musician he was the founding member and drummer for the seminal art rock band, SONIC YOUTH, and drummer/trumpet player for the legendary New York Afro-dance band, KONK.

As a photographer he has exhibited in numerous group and solo exhibitions. He has been featured in art periodicals and magazines; JUXTAPOSE, PUTA, and THE PROPAGANDIST. He has shot magazines spreads and assignments for WAX POETICS and the clothing company AMERICAN APPAREL, and many others. He has also been a featured columnist in the downtown Los Angeles arts magazine, CITIZEN LA.