Sunday January 17, 2010, Port Au Prince, Haiti

Earthquake aftermath in Port au Prince

Police officers walk through smoke after stopping looters in Port-au-Prince, 5 days after a powerful earthquake measuring 7.0 on the Richter Scale devastated the city.

Credit: Timothy Fadek / Polaris

Sunday January 24, 2010, Port Au Prince, Haiti

Earthquake aftermath in Port au Prince

Hungry residents of Cite Soleil, one of the poorest districts in Port au Prince, wait for Haitian musician Wyclef Jean to hand out food 12 days after an earthquake measuring 7.0 on the Richter Scale devastated the capital.

Credit: Timothy Fadek / Polaris

Wednesday October 21, 2009, Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia

Mongolia at the crossroads

20 years after the fall of communism, Mongolia is at a crossroads to the future, despite vast resource riches and a historic mining deal passed by parliament. After twenty years of democracy, one-third of Mongolians live below the poverty line, unemployment is rising, and many residents in Ulan Bator, the gritty capital, live in yurt slums, many without basic services. The rich are making their money in cashmere production and mining and are enjoying the good life. Problems such as alcoholism, domestic abuse and homelessness remain. In rural areas, nomadic traditions are threatened by drought, over-grazing, and poor education. Potential for change exists, but life for many remains difficult. Mongolia faces two paths: Down one, fueled by responsible resource development, lies prosperity, the Norwegian model. Down the other is poverty, corruption, stagnation, the Nigerian model. The tensions in the heartland are increasing. Nomadic herders are abandoning their way of life to work in the gold mines or to seek work in the capital. A struggle is taking place between modernity and tradition, secularism and Buddhism, democracy and economic repression, often in unlikely and contradictory combinations. Contradictions and the complexities of a large country searching for a modern identity are visible all around. Mongolia is at a political, cultural and economic crossroads that will define its very nature. An indifferent alienation which at times can seem to pervade Mongolian society, leaving people not interacting within their world, lost in their own heads, a visual metaphor for what can be the homogenizing and disrupting effects of globalization. This photo project seeks to address and question the concept of East vs West and the process of modernization, urbanization, and national identity that is happening against the backdrop of gold mining riches. The photographer chose to represent the changes by focusing on life that the younger generations in Mongolia experience.

Traditional musicians at an opening reception at the Union of Mongolian Artists Gallery, Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, October 21, 2009.

Credit: Timothy Fadek / Polaris

Wednesday August 18, 2010, New York, New York, USA

Mosque on Park Place is center of controversy

The proposed $100 million 13-story Islamic community center and Mosque near ground zero has lead to high tensions in Lower Manhattan and across the country. Many people from all faiths have gathered in front of the building where the Cordoba Initiative Mosque and Cultural Center would be housed to support the center as well as condemn it.

Gary Phaneuf from Staten Island, shows his support for a proposed Mosque at 45 Park Place

Credit: Timothy Fadek / Polaris

Saturday October 16, 2010, Copiapo, Chile

Portraits of two rescued miners

Victor Segovia Rojas was the 15th miner of 33 to be rescued from the San Jose gold and copper mine that collapsed in collapse on August 5, 2010. Rojas is married to Soledad Morales and has 5 daughters.

**EXCLUSIVE**

Credit: Timothy Fadek / Polaris for Stern magazine

Saturday August 7, 2010, New York, New York, USA

Swimming on Park Avenue

The city has installed three 6.7-metre-long, 2.5-metre-wide steel dumpsters converted into swimming pool to help New Yorkers beat the oppressive summer heat. The giant trash dumpsters are standing in the middle of up-scale Park Avenue South drawing long lines in the first of three weekends in which they will be open. The unused containers were outfitted luxuriously with sunbathing areas, changing rooms and showers. Live bands and street artists entertained residents and tourists on the avenue, which was closed to traffic.

People soak in the water at one of three portable dumpster pools in midtown Manhattan on Park Avenue South

Credit: Timothy Fadek / Polaris

Friday July 16, 2010, New York, USA

Tunnel boring complete on No. 7 train extension

On July 16 at 4:14 pm a giant boring machine punched through a last bit of granite beneath the Port Authority Bus Terminal completing tunneling on the West Side No. 7 line extension.

MTA construction workers below Port Authority, digging out the tunnel extension

Credit: Timothy Fadek / Polaris

Wednesday June 24, 2009, Detroit, Michigan, USA

Urban Decay in Detroit a Symbol of American Decline

The decades-long decline of the U.S. automobile industry is acutely reflected in the urban decay of Detroit, the city once lovingly referred to as Motor City.

Lobby, Lee Plaza Hotel

Credit: Timothy Fadek / Polaris

Saturday April 4, 2009, New York, New York, USA

Protesting for jobs on Wall Street

The Faces of Bailout Protest: A job seeker demonstrates against the U.S. government bailouts of AIG, GM and banks, holds a sign during a rally in the financial district of New York.

Credit: Timothy Fadek / Polaris

Saturday January 2, 2010, Patchogue, New York, USA

A Girl's Gotta Spa!

A Girl's Gotta Spa offers salon and spa services for girls ages 18 and under. Boasting white columns, glitzy chandeliers and custom upholstered manicure and pedicure stations, this fun and detailed establishment screams "girl power" with its bubble gum pink salon chairs, private lounge, custom bar and raspberry shag carpets. Services offered include ice cream pedicures and manicures, glamorous hairstyling, make-up application and chocolate facials. Private, two hour salon parties include invitations, a tiara for the birthday girl, use of the private lounge with karaoke machine, custom soda bar and flat screen TV, luxurious spa robes, take-home hair accessories for each guest and pizza.

Alayna Pedra, 6 reads a magazine while getting a foot bath

Credit: Timothy Fadek / Polaris

Saturday January 23, 2010, Port Au Prince, Haiti

Haitians flea by boat after earthquake

Hundreds of Haitians board a ship The Conformity with their families and few remaining belongings, to leave the quake-ravaged city Port au Prince, to Jeremie, a city on the far west of the country. An earthquake measuring 7.0 on the Richter scale devastated the capital.

Credit: Timothy Fadek / Polaris

Thursday January 14, 2010, Port Au Prince, Haiti

Devastation follows massive Haitian quake

A 7.0 earthquake struck the Haitian capital, Port au Prince, in the late afternoon on January 12, 2010. Thousands of structures crumbled, crushing people and leaving untold numbers trapped. The Red Cross has estimated that a third of the population of 9 million may need emergency assistance and that the full scope of damage will take days to surface. People have been pulling bodies from collapsed buildings and covering them with sheets before placing them at the side of the road as others pack their belongings and leave for aid areas. Medical personnel have put in long hours trying to save thousands of people injured in the quake. Aftershocks continued early the morning of January 14, as relief efforts started to pour in from outside the country.

Onlookers watch as hundreds of bodies are collected in a parking lot at the main hospital of Port-au-Prince

Credit: Timothy Fadek / Polaris

Monday September 20, 2010, New York, New York, USA

The New York Police Department's Manhattan spy center

A rare look inside the top secret New York Police Department lower Manhattan spy center, where cops monitor surveillance cameras and license plate readers around the clock. Mayor Michael Bloomberg and Police Commissioner Ray Kelly announced that subway cameras are also being monitored in the center -- officially called The Lower Manhattan Security Coordination Center. Modeled after London's "Ring of Steel," the NYPD opened its coordination center in 2008, with cops monitoring feeds from hundreds of surveillance cameras and dozens of mobile license plate readers. Plans are underway to have some 3,000 surveillance cameras and as many as 96 fixed license-plate readers feeding into the center. The 24-hour center, based in a nondescript Broadway building, keeps tabs on high-profile terror targets such as the World Trade Center site and Wall Street. The NYPD also aims to install sensors to detect biological and radiological weapons. The Lower Manhattan Security Initiative will monitor the business district south of Canal Street. The program is financed through some $32 million in Homeland Security funds, part of more than $77.7 million in federal funds for counterterrorism programs, overtime and training.

Michael Bloomberg stands next to computer screens showing coverage from surveillance cameras around the city

Credit: Timothy Fadek / Polaris

Friday January 8, 2010, Port Washington, New York, USA

Fitness classes for Moms and Babies

Infant exercise classes have surged on the American parenting scene. Nationwide, classes and facilities dedicated to children's exercise have opened, with some classes aimed at children just a few months old. Exercise classes geared towards newborns and infants under 12 months of age aim to help babies learn new skills, such as sitting up and rolling over; while other classes look to develop upper body strength and the hand-over-hand coordination needed for crawling. However, developmental skills are not all that these classes teach, some look to deepen the parent/child bond. Although these classes still await a nod from medical experts, advocates of baby exercise programs feel that such exercise programs are helpful in a number of ways. They contribute to a child's developing language skills by helping a baby learn to obey simple commands and help a child learn to take turns, accept instructions and share.

A mother holds her 4 month son up to grab at bubbles

Credit: Timothy Fadek / Polaris

Monday August 2, 2010, New York, New York, USA

Recording artist Ke$ha

Recording artist Ke$ha performs at the Casio 'Shock the World' event at The Manhattan Center.

Ke$ha

Credit: Timothy Fadek / Polaris

Wednesday November 26, 2008, New York, New York, USA

New York Times brings on world's first fragrance columnist

Chandler Burr is the first columnist to review and rate fragrances. Burr, a longtime magazine writer and the author of "The Emperor of Scent: A True Story of Perfume and Obsession," had his first column - called Scent Strip - published in the fall issue of T in 2006. Scent Strip appears frequently in issues of T: The New York Times Style Magazine. In the column, Mr. Burr reviews and rates new and classic perfumes as well as other scents such as perfumed candles. He ascribes a four-star rating system to each perfume, similar to those awarded by The Times to restaurants, ranging from no stars for a poor or satisfactory perfume to four stars for an extraordinary scent.

Chandler Burr inside the office of the New York Times.

Credit: Timothy Fadek / Polaris

Saturday May 16, 2009, New York, New York, USA

Stiletto Spy School

Participants learn the art of seduction and seductive dancing at Stiletto Spy School, led by Veronica Varlow. Alana Winter is the creator and leader of the school. The one-day class costs $400. Participants: Samantha Stark, Carolyn Bishop, Laura Braswell, Kristin Booker, Amber Ortiz. Instructors: Russian Karate/Self Defense: Val Hainley (broken nose) Poker: Johnny Marinacci (orange shirt), Michael Slezak (flower shirt) Burlesque/seduction dancing: Veronica Varlow

A class at the Stiletto spy school

Credit: Timothy Fadek / Polaris

Monday April 6, 2009, New York, New York, USA

*B&W* Confronting disability with modern dance

Choreographer Heidi Latsky presents a roster of performers who's bodies are beset with physical challenges, in a dance project called Gimp. The name Gimp is a meant to be an in-your-face confrontation of common notions of disability and dance. "The goal is to honor each person's really specific ways of moving, really specific, unique personalities," said Heidi Latsky, the dancer and choreographer who founded Gimp. Rather than work around these dancers' particular limitations, she tries to find distinct abilities in their bodies and explore the artistic possibilities that can be had from these differences. Group: Heidi Latsky (Director/Choreographer/Performer), Jeffrey Freeze, Lezlie Frye, Lawrence Carter-Long, Catherine Long, Christina Briggs

Credit: Timothy Fadek / Polaris

Wednesday August 18, 2010, New York, New York, USA

Mosque on Park Place is center of controversy

The proposed $100 million 13-story Islamic community center and Mosque near ground zero has lead to high tensions in Lower Manhattan and across the country. Many people from all faiths have gathered in front of the building where the Cordoba Initiative Mosque and Cultural Center would be housed to support the center as well as condemn it.

Muslims pray during Ramadan in a Mosque near Ground Zero

Credit: Timothy Fadek / Polaris

Monday March 16, 2009, New York, New York, USA

Toni Morrison publishes a new book "A Mercy" and translated into French

Pulitzer prize winning author, Toni Morrison, 77, is photographed in her New York apartment .

Credit: Timothy Fadek / Polaris

Wednesday January 14, 2009, New York, New York, USA

New York City hoping to become Vegas wedding rival

New York City is giving its Marriage Bureau a drastic makeover in hopes of transforming it into a Las Vegas-style wedding destination and bringing in more tourism dollars. The city has changed the once cramped, poorly-lit experience via a 24,000-square-foot space that includes a photo wall and a florist.

Jacques Schwarz-Bart, 46, from Guadaloup and his bride Stephanie McKay, a singer from New York, are photographed in front of a photo wall of City Hall.

Credit: Timothy Fadek / Polaris

Sunday June 20, 2010, Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia

Mongolia at the crossroads

20 years after the fall of communism, Mongolia is at a crossroads to the future, despite vast resource riches and a historic mining deal passed by parliament. After twenty years of democracy, one-third of Mongolians live below the poverty line, unemployment is rising, and many residents in Ulan Bator, the gritty capital, live in yurt slums, many without basic services. The rich are making their money in cashmere production and mining and are enjoying the good life. Problems such as alcoholism, domestic abuse and homelessness remain. In rural areas, nomadic traditions are threatened by drought, over-grazing, and poor education. Potential for change exists, but life for many remains difficult. Mongolia faces two paths: Down one, fueled by responsible resource development, lies prosperity, the Norwegian model. Down the other is poverty, corruption, stagnation, the Nigerian model. The tensions in the heartland are increasing. Nomadic herders are abandoning their way of life to work in the gold mines or to seek work in the capital. A struggle is taking place between modernity and tradition, secularism and Buddhism, democracy and economic repression, often in unlikely and contradictory combinations. Contradictions and the complexities of a large country searching for a modern identity are visible all around. Mongolia is at a political, cultural and economic crossroads that will define its very nature. An indifferent alienation which at times can seem to pervade Mongolian society, leaving people not interacting within their world, lost in their own heads, a visual metaphor for what can be the homogenizing and disrupting effects of globalization. This photo project seeks to address and question the concept of East vs West and the process of modernization, urbanization, and national identity that is happening against the backdrop of gold mining riches. The photographer chose to represent the changes by focusing on life that the younger generations in Mongolia experience.

Young Mongolian tourists at Zaisan monument,

Credit: Timothy Fadek / Polaris

Friday May 15, 2009, New York, New York, USA

NYC Tattoo convention

Brett Olague displays his tattoos at the 12th Annual New York City Tattoo Convention at Roseland Ballroom in Manhattan.

Man with tattoos on torso and arms

Credit: Timothy Fadek / Polaris

Monday January 18, 2010, Leogane, Haiti

Leogane epicenter of Haiti quake

The epicentre of Haiti's deadly earthquake was in Leogane which suffered up to 30,000 dead and almost all its buildings flattened. Twelve miles west of it used to have a population of 100,000 but now it is just a waste land.

Apparently no food, water, shelter nor medical assistance has reached Leogane after the earthquake. Residents are removing parts of destroyed buildings to build shelters until longer term housing is built.

Credit: Timothy Fadek / Polaris

Wednesday December 10, 2008, Detroit, Michigan, USA

The Demise of the U.S. Automobile Industry

As the heads of Detroit's automakers plea their cases to Congress for immediate aid, with GM seeking $12 billion in loans and a $6-billion line of credit, Chrysler asking for $7 billion in loans and Ford Motor Co. pursuing a $9-billion line of credit, the big three continue to struggle and might become a casualty of the severe economic crisis. Detroit's automakers employ nearly a quarter-million workers, and more than 730,000 others produce materials and parts for cars. If just one of the automakers should declare bankruptcy, some estimates put U.S. job losses next year as high as 2.5 million.

Junked cars are stacked in the back parking lot of The Highland Park Ford Plant, the original Ford auto factory, which fell into disuse and ruin many decades ago. Here, the remains of cars litter the grounds.

Credit: Timothy Fadek / Polaris

Monday December 29, 2008, New York, New York, USA

The 54th International Debutante Ball held amid recession

Observers had to look hard amid the four-foot floral sculptures and Vera Wang original dresses to find signs of the economy's collapse amid the opulence of the 54th annual International Debutante Ball held at the Waldor-Astoria Hotel. The director of the ball, Margaret Hedberg, brushed off the $14,000 cost of a table, saying "watches cost more," although she acknowledged that perhaps the deepening recession accounted for the smaller crowd this year. "People are not going overboard," said Mrs. Hedberg, who came out in 1963 and is the niece of the ball's founder, Beatrice Dinsmore Joyce. Steeped in tradition, the ball is one of the most exclusive debutante galas in New York and around the country, and this year it included young women from 11 states and from England, France, Germany, Greece and Hong Kong.

Debutantes wearing lavish gowns and carrying floral bouquets have a group photograph taken.

Credit: Timothy Fadek / Polaris

Monday July 31, 2006, Bint Jbail, Lebanon

Trapped Lebanese flee Bint Jbail

Residents of the southern town of Bent Jbail, Lebanon, site of a bloody weeklong siege of Hezbollah fighters by Israeli forces were able to evacuate the town for the first time since fighting began more than two weeks earlier. Israeli warplanes carried out airstrikes in southern Lebanon hours after agreeing to temporarily halt attacks for a period of 48 hours. Despite international calls for an immediate end to hostilities, Israel has promised to continue its offensive against Hezbollah militants operating in Lebanon.

Lebanese civilians await their evacuation onboard a bus.

Credit: Timothy Fadek / Polaris

Thursday June 12, 2008, New York, New York, USA

Obama popularity apparent in New York's Harlem neighborhood

In Harlem, everyone has an opinion about presidential candidate, Illinois Senator Barack Obama, now that he is the presumptive nominee for the Democratic party.

T-shirts part of a shop front window display showing Barack Obama and Dr. Martin Luther King.

Credit: Timothy Fadek / Polaris

Saturday March 14, 2009, Brooklyn, New York, USA

Beard and mustache competition

The 4th Annual New York Beard and Mustache competition was held at the Public Assembly bar in Williamsburg. About 80 contestants competed in eight categories, including goatee, sideburns, ladies artificial, and, in an economically appropriate gesture, the recession beard. Some had grown their beards for 8 years and longer, and the men range in age from 21-70. Leon Lutz, of Lancaster, PA, won the "sideburn" category. Burke Kenny, of Olympia, WA, competed in the freestyle section. But it was one man's “recession beard," grown out over five months of unemployment, that took one of the competition's top prizes despite boos from the audience. “It feels awesome," said a visibly drunk Nate Stahura, 27, who said he let his wild and unkempt beard go crazy after he was laid off as a financial broker. “I'm awesome!î Judges selected winners based on each beard's proportion and personality, of which there was plenty to spare. The overall best beard or mustache was voted on by the rowdy crowd of about 1,000 facial hair fans, with the winner receiving $500. “It's a tough competition," said David Grams, 22, surveying his bewhiskered opponents after driving eight hours from his home in Oil City, Pa.

Participant in the beard & mustache competition

Credit: Timothy Fadek / Polaris

Timothy Fadek

Timothy Fadek is an independent photojournalist based in New York City. A graduate with a BA degree in Marketing and a minor in Journalism, he later attended NY~s School of Visual Arts. After a 6 year stint in advertising, he made a major career change to work as a photographer. His photographs and stories have been widely published in magazines such as Time, Newsweek, US News & World Report, German Geo, The New York Times Magazine, Paris Match, Le Monde, Le Figaro and Stern, among others. He has faced personal risk in order to bring attention to major world events such as conflicts in Kosovo, Israel and the Palestinian Territories, the attack on the World Trade Center, the US-led war in Iraq and civil wars in Macedonia and Haiti. His photographs have earned him industry awards and have been exhibited in major galleries. He has been a contributor to several photo books, including books on the World Trade Center attacks and the war in Iraq.

Personal web site of Timothy Fadek