MICHAEL INDRESANO NAMED MEDICINE MAN OF THE YEAR 2019

Indresano Studios is proud to announce that Medicine Wheel has named Michael Indresano as the 2019 Medicine Man of the Year. This prestigious award is meant to recognize a member of the community who has donated more than their fair share of time or resources to Medicine Wheel and aided in Medicine Wheel’s mission of promoting inclusion across all walks of life.

Michael served on the board of Medicine Wheel for 6 years, eventually being voted in as the chairman of the board.

Michael Indresano with Michael Dowling, William Gross, and Mark McGonagle
(From Left to Right) Michael Indresano, Medicine Wheel Director Michael Dowling, Boston Police Commissioner William Gross, and Medicine Wheel Board of Directors member Mark McGonagle

The team at Indresano Studios has been honored to host multiple Medicine Wheel events and has had the pleasure of producing multiple promotional videos for Medicine Wheel to generate awareness of its Hand in Hand project.

Michael will be presented with the award at the 2019 “Turning The Wheel” event in Boston. For more information about the event or to purchase tickets, please visit www.mwponline.org.

MEDICINE WHEEL – HAND IN HAND 2019 WITH BOSTON POLICE COMMISSIONER WILLIAM GROSS

The Indresano Studios team has partnered up with Medicine Wheel Productions to host Medicine Wheel’s “Hand in Hand” event, which aims to bridge the culture gap between some of Boston’s at-risk youth and the Boston Police Department. It is a full day of bonding activities, eventually culminating in a photoshoot at Indresano Studios!

In addition to hosting the photo shoot, the Indresano team is producing a short video for Medicine Wheel’s promotional purposes.

Hand In Hand brings together Boston Police officers and young adults, most of whom have had negative experiences with police in the past, to try to understand and accept their differences by embracing their similarities; namely their humanity, and common experience.

Medicine Wheel Hand in Hand – Hand Casting

Before the workshop began, our team interviewed a few of the young adults, as well as Medicine Wheel Director Michael Dowling and Director of Public Art and Advocacy Richard Dinsmore to learn a little more about what this program is and how it has helped the two communities become closer together.

Each young adult is paired with an officer, then the workshop begins with a meditation period. Following this, each participant writes an “I Am” poem about identity.

Medicine Wheel Hand in Hand – “I Am” Poems

Partners then create a mold of their clasped hands, which is later turned into a bronzed cast. These hand-in-hand statues are then displayed at Medicine Wheel, and at any events that Medicine Wheel hosts.

Medicine Wheel Hand in Hand – Hand Casting

After a short dinner, participants then head to Indresano Studios to get their portraits taken.

Boston Police Commissioner William Gross with Damarius
Boston Police Commissioner William Gross with Damarius

Medicine Wheel Director Michael Dowling with Mookie
Medicine Wheel Director Michael Dowling with Mookie

Thank you to Boston PD, and Medicine Wheel and the young adults of Medicine Wheel for letting us be a part of this important day! We’re excited to help spread the word about this amazing program.

To see more of our photography and video work, please check us out at www.Indresano.com

BOSTON POLICE COMMISSIONER: LEADING BOSTON’S FINEST

Boston’s Finest needs a strong leader, and that’s exactly what Police Commissioner William B. Evans is. Our team recently had the opportunity to photograph the Commissioner for the cover of SCENE magazine.  Rather than photographing him in the studio, we wanted to showcase him out in the city he protects.

First thing was getting the set ready. We picked a location with a city skyline, and added in the police cars to set the mood.

Michael Indresano Photoshoot With South Boston Police

Michael and the team worked quickly in the cold to get all the lighting and setup ready for when Commissioner Evans arrived.

Michael Indresano Photography On Location Photoshoot

Our team member Jayna set up the camera and took some test shots. We lucked out with some beautiful skies!

Michael Indresano On Location Photoshoot with Police Commissione

SCENE Magazine’s Publisher and Creative Director Bobby DiMarzo chatted with the police offers on location to give them direction for the photoshoot.

Scene Magazine March Issue Photoshoot

When the Commissioner arrived, Michael and Bobby gave him a warm welcome before quickly diving into the details and getting the Commissioner groomed by our stylist Krystle Feher.

Micheal indresano with South Boston Police Commissioner Bill Eva

Michael went over the image inspiration with the Boston Police Commissioner before beginning the photoshoot to make sure that the mood was just right.

Police Commissioner Bill Evans With Michael Indresano

Commissioner Evans and a few of Boston’s Finest got into their places and received a few last minute pointers and tips from Michael before starting.

Police Commissioner Bill Evans Photoshoot

All that was left to do was to shoot! The team had to work quick to get the perfect image with the time that Commissioner Bill Evans had available in his busy schedule!

Michael Indresano Photographs Police Commissioner Bill Evans

Everything went smoothly, and the image only needed a few lines of copy before gracing the cover of SCENE magazine!

Scene Magazine Spring Cover with Commissioner William Evans

MEDICINE WHEEL PRODUCTIONS – HAND IN HAND

Hand in Hand is an ambitious project of building rapport and extending the circle of friendship to include two often misunderstood groups of people – police officers and young adults. This project is the brainchild of Quincy native and visionary artist Michael Dowling. For over 22 years, he has spearheaded the well respected non-profit organization called Medicine Wheel Productions as its founder and artistic director. Mr. Dowling’s commitment to the positive transformation of troubled youths through art and community building has won him extensive recognition.

Michael Indresano, a board member of Medicine Wheel, did not hesitate to create a powerful video documentary that celebrates commonality and inclusion, further addressing hot-button social/racial issues that dominate our national conversation today.

Filming the the video took place for a few months and required countless hours of post production. Michael and his team were instrumental in organizing all the interviews, documenting the workshops through video, photographing the portraits, editing the footage together, and acted as technical consultant to all matters relating to video and photo. The video creation process started with a dedicated team of professionals bringing together their diverse skill set and industry know-how into conceptualizing a story. Many hours of brainstorming took place at our 33 A Street studio in South Boston. Michael Indresano led the team as director overseeing the entire creative process. With over 22 years of award-winning photography expertise, he is no stranger to the world of visual story telling. A true seasoned professional and master of detail, Michael directed the camera crew and lighting technicians with precise angles and adjustments; infusing every shot with a consistent degree of thought, emotion, and impact, further driving the message with vigor and determined vision.

The final video release was launched at the Medicine Wheel Turning The Wheel Annual Fundraiser at the Nixon Peabody law firm to exuberant applause. Attendees of the event included Boston Police Commissioner William B. Evans, Boston City Councilor at large Ayanna Pressley, Community Affairs Liaison for the Boston Redevelopment Authority Mark McGonagle (MW Chair of the Board of Directors), Boston Police Deputy Superintendent Nora L. Baston, Vice President at Harvard Pilgrim Healthcare Karen Young, Community Involvement Director for Harvard Pilgrim Health Care Janelle Woods-McNish, Executive Director of South Asian Arts Council Amit Dixit, State Auditor Suzanne M. Bump, along with many more prominent high profile public officials and loyal Medicine Wheel supporters voicing their support for this project.

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Nixon Peabody where the Turning The Wheel Annual Fundraiser took place.

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Boston Police Commissioner William Evans sits down with us for an interview.

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Chairman of the Board of Directors at Medicine Wheel Mark McGonagle addresses some of the finer points.

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Boston Police Deputy Superintendent Nora L. Baston.

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Medicine Wheel Director of Advocacy Richie Dinsmore talks about the Hand in Hand project.

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Daniel Morrison Fellow Shane Hampton preps for an interview as Michael directs the scene.

Special thanks to all members on the Medicine Wheel Board of Directors, the Host Committee, and the Medicine Wheel participants for their continued commitment and support. 

Host Committee: Suzanne Bump (State Auditor), Linda Dorcena Forry (State Senator), Robert Lewis Jr. (President & Founder of The BASE), Julie Burros (Chief of Arts and Culture City of Boston), Paul McDevitt (President of Modern Assistant Programs, Inc), Anita Walker (Executive Director of Massachusetts Cultural Council), Karen Young (Vice President & Chief Inclusion Officer Harvard Pilgrim Health Care), Constance Cervone & Janet Deegan (Cervone & Deegan Associates), Janelle Woods McNish (Director of Giving & Services Harvard Pilgrim Health Care), Paul Regan (Regan Associates), Ed Condry (Vice President of JJ Bodner).

Medicine Wheel Board of Directors: Michael Dowling (Founder), Mark McGonagle (Chairman), Dennis Pellecchia (Treasurer), Rick Winterson (Clerk), Jane Bowers, Maureen Dahill, Barbara Loftus, Roberto Valdez, Susan Nalband, Michael Indresano, Amit Dixit, Roy Rider.

Advisory Board: Ruth Raphael

The Boston Police Department Participants: Nora L. Baston (Deputy Superintendent), Skye Robinson, Janine Busby (Detective), Mark Bordley, Alexander Reyes, and many more.

Medicine Wheel Members: Richie Dinsmore, Gregory Variste, Shane Hampton, Annina Ibrihim, Kawanza Butler, Noel McKenna, Anna Dinaburg White, and many more.