It’s called lymphoepithelioma, and it’s nasty: an aggressive cancer that begins in the upper part of the throat behind the nose and virulently attacks the head and neck. The good news is that it strikes only seven Americans in a million. The bad news is Wyatt McSpadden is one of them. The Austin photographer who’s shot so many images for Texas Monthly and who documented so lovingly the state’s smokiest, juiciest barbecue joints in the book Texas BBQ is currently receiving treatment for the illness at Houston’s MD Anderson Cancer Center, where portraits that he himself has taken of some of the cancer care center’s patients line the walls.
As you can imagine, such treatment isn’t cheap, and it isn’t helped by the costs of traveling back and forth to Houston. Fortunately, McSpadden has many friends in the photographic community who are joining forces to help him and his wife, Nancy McMillen, cover those costs. They’ve put together ‘View From Within,’ a benefit in which master photographic prints by more than two dozen exceptional camera artists – including Keith Carter, Bear Guerra, O. Rufus Lovett, Bill Wittliff, Andrew Yates, Dan Winters, and, of course, McSpadden himself – will be available for purchase. For just a fin, you can enjoy snacks and beverages while you decide which print will look best in your home, all the while knowing that every dollar goes to the Wyatt McSpadden Medical Fund. The event takes place Friday, Dec. 16, 6-9pm, at the Charla Wood Studio, 1308 E. Seventh.
This article appears in December 16 • 2011.