Homelessness Public Art Project

In 2011, I was invited to participate in a collaborative public art project with the Fresno Art Museum and Poverello House, the city’s leading homeless shelter. I made portraits of unhoused people who had volunteered to participate. I also made portraits of housed people to make the point the anyone can potentially become homeless. Giant monochrome poster prints were installed on walls throughout downtown Fresno. No press release was issued, and no publicity sought. The idea was to raise awareness of homelessness with a public art installation that would compel people ask questions.             I was intrigued by the way the monochrome images became distorted by the installation process and the passing of time. I also liked the way they acquired color from their surroundings. I saw the potential for a very different secondary project. In 2018, I reprinted some of the poster portraits and installed them in new locations. Then I waited a year before rephotographing them in color to create this portfolio.