My first trip to Israel and Palestine was an intuitive leap, and nothing about it turned out as planned. But in a state of confusion and stress I found this story. I started looking at what was going on around me, and this is what I saw. It is not an objective or political story, it's personal, and it's not the entire picture of the conflict, it is about what I learnt of being a Palestinian in Israel and Palestine today. Alongside the actual attacks, clashes and casualties, there is a conflict going on within each person in Israel and Palestina. Ordinary people are making extraordinary choices to get by. This story is about a deviant society, and people acting as if it is normal.
Life's a Blast is a project from Israel and Palestine that I photographed from 2008 to 2010. I worked randomly, meeting people of all sorts, letting one thing lead to another. I traveled to all the places I read or heard about. Choosing to balance my work by meeting the opponents to those I randomly came across. And slowly building my own picture of the situation in the region.
Linda Forsell
Linda Forsell is a freelancing photojournalist based in New York.