Madison area residents are always curious about the new developments and buildings coming to their neighborhoods.
Paul Vassalotti takes that a step further, photographing the men and women who pour concrete, the iron workers affixing a steel truss to a building or the engineers at a construction site.
“I generally like to showcase individuals where I can, because I think that gets overlooked a lot,” he said. “I like to catch people down to the details, the individual doing their job. It showcases their skills and their craftsmanship.”
Vassalotti, 70, pursues this passion as a part-time employee of commercial contractor JP Cullen. He first connected with the company when he was hanging around the Judge Doyle Square project in downtown Madison and taking photos.
As it turns out, Cullen was in need of a photographer to help capture its projects and people, he said.
“I joke with my boss that they found me out on the street and they gave me a job,” he said.
Vassalotti began devoting more time to photography after retiring from a 37-year career at BASF, where he had a role in the agriculture chemical field.
Since joining Cullen, he’s won several construction photography awards.
For anyone keen to document the changing face of Dane County, there is no shortage of material. Tower cranes soar above the city in every direction.
“My impression of all of this is, boy, it’s a good time to be in the trades,” he said.
He pointed to the Baird Center in Milwaukee, the Kellner Family Athletic Center, the South End Zone Renovation at Camp Randall and UW Health Eastpark Medical Center as some of his favorite projects to document.
But to Vassalotti, “it’s about the human beings doing the work. That’s always No. 1.
“If you were photographing a basketball game, you’d want to see the guy making the three-point shot, not the whole team.”
On the subject of sports, our cover story this month focuses on how businesses are increasingly looking to women’s athletics to help market their products. And thanks to name, image and likeness opportunities, such promotions have grown exponentially.
There are a lot more stories to dig into this month. Enjoy the issue, and have a safe and happy holiday season.
