OAKLAND FAITH - SACRED PARADOX
“Sacred Paradox” delves into the enigmatic duality of Oakland, where places of worship abound amidst escalating violence and dwindling attendance. This project navigates the multifaceted identities of the city’s spiritual leaders, exploring their transformative potential and connection to the community.
This project invites viewers to embrace the sacred paradox of Oakland and envision a world where spirituality and communal engagement intertwine to forge a brighter path forward.
J. Michael Tucker
Dreams in color- Drives a ’72 Toyota Land Cruiser
- Speaks passable French
- Loves a challenge (it’s an Aries thing.)
- Thinks fast on his feet
- Terrible singer, but dances like Travolta
- Collects junk
- Believes friends are family
- Measures twice, cuts once
- Lives with Hank, a 100 lb. Chocolate Lab
- Plays ball three times a week
- Good moons on his fingernails
- Karaoke song is Roxanne by Sting
- Cooks a good meatloaf
- Has no annoying habits
HARRY GYOKYO BRIDGE, Resident Minister Buddhist Church Oakland
At the height of COVID-19, Nicolò, a close colleague and friend, began documenting houses of worship within the city of Oakland. After having photographed nearly 500 of them, he invited me to collaborate and expand the project to include photographing and interviewing the spiritual leaders of these sacred places.
Nicolò and I come from two completely different styles of photography, but we both love photographing people. We have been bouncing the ball back and forth for more than ten years. When you find a person to collaborate with that you don’t need to explain yourself to, then you are blessed with a friend.
~ J. Michael Tucker
We have photographed upwards of 30 spiritual leaders so far and hope to increase the number to 50 or 60 by the end of the year. We strive to capture the wide diversity of cultures that make up Oakland. Initially, we photographed any church, synagogue, mosque or house of worship we could convince to open their doors to us, which was not so easy. Subjects became easier to find as word of mouth and recommendations began to precede us within Oakland’s religious community.
~ J. Michael Tucker
DAMON WASHINGTON, Pastor at Immanuel Temple Seventh-day Adventist Church
JACQUELINE THOMPSON, Pastor at Allen Temple Baptist Church
Oakland Faith began as a personal project to keep my friend and I sane during COVID and evolved to become one of the most interesting projects I have ever worked on. I’ve always gotten a kick out of the access photographers are given to certain people or locations that might otherwise be inaccessible. At first, I enjoyed the novelty of taking portraits of clergy in their surroundings, but it progressed into something more. Photographing these spiritual leaders and hearing their viewpoints and stories opened my eyes to a religious world that I’d never really thought much about. [Nicolò and I] hope that by sharing these images and interviews with our community, it will help bridge some of our differences and bring us closer together by realizing we are more alike than not.
~ J. Michael Tucker
PHYLLIS SCOTT, Pastor at Tree of Life Empowerment Ministries
I’m a Canon shooter and am never without my Profoto B1 lights. We both photograph editorially with an advertising edge. Just about every shoot is a separate entity. Given that we’d never visited locations prior to our shoots, we packed in very heavy to each one, not knowing if on that day we were shooting natural light or lighting up an entire house of worship. I have no favorite modifiers and really no special rules to follow except keeping my batteries charged.
~ J. Michael Tucker
SYLVESTER RUTHLEDGE, Pastor at North Oakland Missionary Baptist Church
Reverend Sylvester Rutledge is the pastor at North Oakland Missionary Baptist Church, the second-oldest Black church in Oakland. For Oakland Faith, Nicolò and I generally only have 20 to 30 minutes a piece to execute our vision. We also usually see the inside of the building for the first time when we go to shoot, and we need to be able to find the perfect location, light it and create a cool image of our subject.
As I began setting up lights for my shot, I noticed the reverend sitting quietly in the pews on the other side of the church. I abandoned my first location and rushed over to capture this intimate moment. I was overwhelmed by the beauty of this scene. I could feel and see the magic well before pointing my camera and snapping the shutter; creating this portrait literally felt like I had tapped into that magic.
~ J. Michael Tucker
“We can agree not to agree. Yes, sir. But to still love one another.”
BILLIE DIXON
“But what’s most important is that you live on purpose, that you have intention, that you think about what you want your life to be, and you make choices in order to get there.”
JACQUELINE MATES-MUCHIN
Rabbi at Temple Sinai
“We preach love and we try to let people know we have to meet people right where they are.”
MICHAEL WALLACE
Pastor at Mount Zion Missionary Baptist Church
