DAY 80

SOCIAL & POLITICAL COMMENTARY

Homelessness

THE DEEPER TRUTH

Humans collect, they nest, they gather the practical, the sentimental, and the essential objects they need to make it through a day. What they choose to place around them, to laboriously carry and to hold dear reveals a deeper requirement of “home.” No matter whether we own, rent, or lease, live with family and friends, live in a shelter, or any place that provides safety for the night—we always re-create around us our basic understanding of home.

Homelessness is a condition involving a person and a story. Convey this condition with visual observations about possessions, living environments, and interpersonal interactions. Document where the homeless fit within a community and how that community responds to them. Look at different levels of community—local, state, federal, international.

Find a level of personal connection, and make the photographs about a personal journey. Consider for a moment that connecting with the underpinnings and objects of being homeless allows for a deeper investigation of the topic. —MLR