Matt Slaby

Denver, Colorado | +1.303.877.0273 | mattslaby@luceoimages.com

$A billboard advertises the daily entertainment at Buckskin Joe\'s, a tourist attraction in southern Colorado. The town is comprised of buildings transferred one piece at a time from several defunct frontier towns and has been the set for several western movies graced by stars such as John Wayne and Goldie Hawn.$

$A rifle waiting for the day\'s deer hunt.$

$The words DEATH FROM AFAR are visible, stamped around the bore of former Marine shooter and competition sniper rifleman, Bob Dogget\'s Serbu .50 caliber sniper rifle.$

$A photograph taken through a magnifying glass of actor and icon John Wayne in the film \$

$Avid gardener and professional mathematics tutor, Chris Morrison, at her home in Centennial, Colo. She is one of the NRA\'s approximately 40 recipients of the distinction of Triple Distinguished Expert --a ranking requiring the demonstration of expertise in shotgun, pistol, and rifle. Morrison began shooting at the age of 54, achieving her ranking four years later at the age of 58.$

Gun Culture U.S.A.

On June 26 of 2008 the United States Supreme Court stated, for the first time in history, that individuals have a protected right to bear arms. The question had long remained unanswered with opponents of the decision arguing that the military –and not the individual –had been the only entity ensured that right. At ground level, the decision virtually guaranteed that guns will remain a prevalent icon in American culture. This essay looks at that icon and the spectrum of gun owners in the United States, focusing on the cultural manifestations of the gun and its ubiquitous role in popular culture.

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BIOGRAPHY

Matt Slaby is a photographer based in Denver, Colorado. Before turning his attention to photography, he traveled the western United States as a wildland firefighter with the U.S. Forest Service Hotshots also working winters as an EMT with a metropolitan ambulance service. Slaby interned at U.S. News & World Report covering the 2006 congressional elections and the Washington, D.C. political circuit, including the White House and U.S. Capitol. He has a background in writing and literature and holds a J.D. from the University of Denver Sturm College of Law. Slaby brings his diverse background to the field of photography and journalism and is particularly passionate about making the unique and multidimensional culture of his home in the western United States accessible to a broader audience. Slaby's current body of work has received honors from PDN, American Photography, Communication Arts, Center, and LOOKBetween. A selection of his clients includes U.S. News & World Report, Time, Newsweek, The Wall Street Journal, Smithsonian Magazine, Mother Jones, The Bureau of Land Management, Audubon Magazine, National Public Radio, Days Japan, The National Interagency Fire Center, The Department of Defense Military Health System, BD, Discovery Communications, and Human Rights Campaign.