Practical Response - Local Issues
I based my 'Curatorship Task' on global political and economic issues; and chose to incorporate photojournalists who have documented controversial, political and natural events across the globe. Therefore, when deciding on what my practical response should be, it became clear to me that I wished for it to manifest similar themes and topics. However, it was also apparent that I was unable to fully achieve the extent of documentation that these photographers achieved at a professional level. Under these circumstances I realised that I should tackle investigating and documenting issues that are relevent to me in my local area and city, London.
At the time of when I first enveloped in to starting my practical response a national teachers protest was soon to commense. This was a very important and relevent event to myself and my present educative condition. This is becuase I only recently began studying the second part of my A-Levels; so any alarming threat to my education, for instance potential strikes, had a direct impact upon myself and my fellow pupils.
At the time of when I first enveloped in to starting my practical response a national teachers protest was soon to commense. This was a very important and relevent event to myself and my present educative condition. This is becuase I only recently began studying the second part of my A-Levels; so any alarming threat to my education, for instance potential strikes, had a direct impact upon myself and my fellow pupils.
Teacher's National Protest
On October 17th 2013, nearly 10,000 schools across the country were closed due to a teacher's strike and protest which lasted for the duration of one day. Initially I was frustrated that my school had closed, especially the Sixth-Form, since myself and other students in my year are at a crucial stage in our education, studying at A2 level. In addition, prior to the protest I read a number of articles with the intention to learn more about the protest and the reasons behind it. I discovered that David Cameron's government, and particularly the Education Secretary, Michael Gove had enforced budget cuts on the education system. This resulted in a change of contract in relation to teacher's pensions and an increase in difficulty for teachers to earn a greater income. After finding out about such information I felt that the protest had a lot of justification and cause behind it, however, I felt the need to investigate further and visit the actual protest in order to view first-hand, whether or not the protests in London had a prominent effect.
During my visit to the protest I attempted to document the demonstration through the medium of photographs and video. Below are a series of 24 images which I have separately edited from the sub-total of the images I had captured. I felt that these were the most successful in exemplifying the true nature of the protest and the spirit which it manifested. When documenting the event, my intention was to display the peaceful orientation of the protest, as well as the respect which the teacher's and police mutually evoked. Adding to this, I wished to present the diversity of participants, which ranged from people of all walks of life and ages.
After attending the protest, I was taking back by the sense of union and passion that the demonstrators illustrated. The protestors marched from Malet Street, near Euston all the way to the Emmanuel Centre. The actual length of the march was about 1.2 miles in distance; I was deeply surprised by the actual magnitude of the protest, and I truly felt the potential impact it had on London that day. However, It became apparent that such protest may not achieve a change in government regulation and reform. I can appreciate, however, that it sends out of message to the public, influencing individuals to endeavour discovering the cause behind the protest and in hope, motivate more a action and influence a favourable change in opinion.
I would like to develop upon my observations relative to economic issue. Since the protest was a result of budget and wage cuts for teachers, I wished investigate more demographics which have been effected by a lack of economic and governmental support. I wish to expand my knowledge of the problematic results of the contemporary economy. Such as, the inequalities and division it creates, and the social and individual impact it has on people's lives.
I would like to develop upon my observations relative to economic issue. Since the protest was a result of budget and wage cuts for teachers, I wished investigate more demographics which have been effected by a lack of economic and governmental support. I wish to expand my knowledge of the problematic results of the contemporary economy. Such as, the inequalities and division it creates, and the social and individual impact it has on people's lives.
Homelessness
After exploring economic division in the London community, I wished to expand on the theme and investigate people who are directly effected by economic downfall. I wished to expand upon my contextual and personal knowledge of individuals economic situation and the institutional attempts to help remedy economic instability. I recently read in the 'Daily Mirror' news paper that the our present government are enforcing rules and regulations that conflict with the livelihoods of homeless individuals. They are attempting to ban any offerings of food, money or any form on gift to homeless people. If one is caught carrying out such act, then they are punishable by fine. As well as this, they are cutting up to "£5 million worth of budgets towards funding Hostels and Soup Kitchens", as they have stated that such institutions only "'encourage' people to sleep on the streets". After reading this article I particularly felt aggravated at the lack of humility and compassion eledgedly presented by the state. Therefore, this encouraged me to focus my Project Response towards the topic of homelessness.
To gether homelessness related information I looked in to the website 'Londonspovertyprofile.org.uk'. It presents information about homelessness and housing statistics specifically in the city of London. I particularly researched indicators of poverty. The site displayed a number of 'key points' and statistic based facts as evidence of the severity of homelessness in London. For instance, elegedly "The number of people sleeping rough in London has almost doubled in the last four years. Around 6,400 people were sleeping rough in 2012." This is evidence of homeless being a worsening rather than improving issue. In addition, the number of people officially accepted as homeless has risen, "but more slowly". This statement made me wonder that possibly, for the benefit of appearance, homeless people were not being noted, recognised or statistically numbered; which only made the dilemma of homelessness more apparent. Additionally, I observed potential causes for the rise in homelessness in London. Living in the city myself, I have witnessed the radical rise in housing prices, especially in comparison to the rest of England. Therefore, it seems that for a great amount of people, these rising prices are becoming seemingly unaffordable. Statistics show that "the cost of renting even the cheapest quarter of accommodation in London is double that of the cheapest quarter in the rest of England. The same is true for the costs of buying a home." - London Poverty Profile.
Recently in my local area, I have noticed an increasing number of homeless people occupying the streets. So before attempting to carry out my photographic project in to homelessness I felt it necessary to investigate and gain more contextual and factual information on the matter. To initially gain this information, I researched the UK's official government website, specifically looking in to homelessness in the United Kingdom. Firstly, I observed statistics related to accomodation and housing support for the homeless. "Of the 28,240 decisions made between 1 April and 30 June 2013": 48 percent of homeless applications were accepted; 26 percent were found not to be homeless; 18 percent were found to be homeless but not in "priority need"; and 8 percent were found to be intentionally homeless and in priority need.
I found some of my research to be alarming and not understandable. For instance, I am unfamiliar with the criteria of being a "priority need" homeless case. I would imagine that being homeless intrinsically entailed a necessitation for housing. Secondly, although it was a low percentage of people - 8% of the overall amount of "homelessness acceptances - I still found it shocking that a number of people were found to be 'intentionally homeless'. This influenced me to investigate further in to reasons for homelessness and peoples intention or inadvertent coercions that have caused this decline in their lives. I want to obtain first hand information and experiences from homeless people, with regards to how they are treated and the difficulty of the application process for accomodation or government support.
I then began research in to photographers that have investigated in to homelessness also. I observed their photographic approaches to obtain inspiration and influence for my photographic endeavours. To start, I began looking at the work of Michael Heffernan; who has photographer homeless people across London.
I then began research in to photographers that have investigated in to homelessness also. I observed their photographic approaches to obtain inspiration and influence for my photographic endeavours. To start, I began looking at the work of Michael Heffernan; who has photographer homeless people across London.
'Portraits of the Homeless' by Lee Jeffries
In 2008, accountant and amateur photographer Lee Jeffries was in London to run a marathon. On the day before the race, Jeffries went around London to take pictures. Near Leicester Square Jeffries trained his camera on a young homeless woman, who was huddled in a sleeping bag. He states that "she spotted [him], drawing the attention" of pedestrians. Jeffries says, "he could of just walked away in an embarrassed stated, or he could go and apologise to her." He chose the latter and went and sat with the woman. The eighteen-year old woman was a drug addict, and went about explaining her story to Jeffries. Her parents had died, thus leaving her with no home, forcing her to live on the streets.
Jeffries claims that this experience has a "profound effect" on him. It sharpened the subject matter of his street photography-homelessness-and defined his approach to takings pictures. Jeffries, however, felt that he did not want to "exploit" the homeless or "steal" photos from them, using them as an easy medium to photography. In an effort to make intimate portraits, Jeffries made sure to connect with his subjects on an individual level first. Jeffries says, "he needs some kind of emotion in his subjects" and he exercises photographic focus on his subjects eyes to do so. Jeffries attempted to keep his encounters with the homeless as "informal as possible." He states that in interviews, he rarely takes note as he feels it raises "suspicion" and tries to capture his subjects image during having a conversation with them. This is in order to correctly capture their "true emotion." He has stated that “everyone else walks by like the homeless are invisible. I’m stepping through the fear, in the hope that people will realize these people are just like me and you.” Therefore, it is evident that Jeffries intends to portray his subjects in a honest light.
Jeffries has exercised his project in various cities, including Las Vegas, Paris, London and Rome. Jeffries image process and his heavy use of shadow and light within his pictures is a direct reference to the religious overtones he felt while photographing the beggars and homeless in Rome. This religious sensation inspired his consisting dark toned theme throughout this series of work. The underexposure of the images and the process of dodging the back light in the photos is justified by Jeffries intention to relate his images to a more analogue style of printing; even though they are digitally edited. In addition, Jeffries digital approach to his editing allows him to accentuate physical details of his subjects.
He uses his photography to draw attention to and raise funds for the homeless, posting the images to "Flickr" (a photo sharing media) and entering the work into competitions. Over the past three years Jeffries has placed third, second and second in an annual Amateur Photographer magazine award contest, and has won separate monthly contests which come with a camera as a reward. Each of the half dozen cameras he’s won has been donated to raise funds for charities, including homeless and disability organizations. The proceeds from Jeffries’s 'Blurb Book', which features homeless portraits, go to the Union Rescue Mission in Los Angeles and the photographer allows any charity to use his images free of charge. Further, Jeffries also runs marathons in London and New York to raise money for the U.K. housing charity, Shelter.
Jeffries claims that this experience has a "profound effect" on him. It sharpened the subject matter of his street photography-homelessness-and defined his approach to takings pictures. Jeffries, however, felt that he did not want to "exploit" the homeless or "steal" photos from them, using them as an easy medium to photography. In an effort to make intimate portraits, Jeffries made sure to connect with his subjects on an individual level first. Jeffries says, "he needs some kind of emotion in his subjects" and he exercises photographic focus on his subjects eyes to do so. Jeffries attempted to keep his encounters with the homeless as "informal as possible." He states that in interviews, he rarely takes note as he feels it raises "suspicion" and tries to capture his subjects image during having a conversation with them. This is in order to correctly capture their "true emotion." He has stated that “everyone else walks by like the homeless are invisible. I’m stepping through the fear, in the hope that people will realize these people are just like me and you.” Therefore, it is evident that Jeffries intends to portray his subjects in a honest light.
Jeffries has exercised his project in various cities, including Las Vegas, Paris, London and Rome. Jeffries image process and his heavy use of shadow and light within his pictures is a direct reference to the religious overtones he felt while photographing the beggars and homeless in Rome. This religious sensation inspired his consisting dark toned theme throughout this series of work. The underexposure of the images and the process of dodging the back light in the photos is justified by Jeffries intention to relate his images to a more analogue style of printing; even though they are digitally edited. In addition, Jeffries digital approach to his editing allows him to accentuate physical details of his subjects.
He uses his photography to draw attention to and raise funds for the homeless, posting the images to "Flickr" (a photo sharing media) and entering the work into competitions. Over the past three years Jeffries has placed third, second and second in an annual Amateur Photographer magazine award contest, and has won separate monthly contests which come with a camera as a reward. Each of the half dozen cameras he’s won has been donated to raise funds for charities, including homeless and disability organizations. The proceeds from Jeffries’s 'Blurb Book', which features homeless portraits, go to the Union Rescue Mission in Los Angeles and the photographer allows any charity to use his images free of charge. Further, Jeffries also runs marathons in London and New York to raise money for the U.K. housing charity, Shelter.
This photograph elucidates Jeffries intention to respect an analogue approach to photography. The subject matter of the photo that is out of focus, resembles similar characteristics of an analogue processed photograph. This creates a fabrication of authenticity, but also reflects Jeffries intent to create an 'emotional' image through the heavy use of dark tones and light. Furthermore, the subject eye contact is directly focused on the camera lens. Jeffries sometimes requests his subjects to look directly in to the camera. This is to create an emotional connection between the subject in the photo and his audience. Jeffries use of black&white photography also heavily highlights the detailed features of the individual. This is because is allowed the audience to register with the entirety of the portrait, due to the consistency of colour and shade. This technique, as well, allows Jeffries to reinforce finer individual details. Such as; individual hairs, wrinkles and fluctuations of white light across the image.
Ultimately, I admire Jeffries approach to portraiture and his emotional commitment to the subject of homelessness. It has inspired me to take upon exercising my investigation in a similar, informal fashion. I feel that this is essential to recieve an honest response and information from my subjects, yet also to provide them with a true sense of understanding and appreciation towards their situations. Although I strongly admire Jeffries photography, I feel that the heavy digital enhancement takes a way a naturalistic aspect that I desire to generate through my portraiture. I, nonetheless, intent to take upon a similar style of photo journalism and will also adopt Jeffries black&white process and attention to detail. |
Michael Heffernan - 'Streets' London's Young Homeless
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Heffernan is a photographer with 22 years of experience based in London. He photographs real people in their work or leisure environments, as well as working with a highly experienced production team on shoots which require the sourcing of models, locations and permits.
Heffernan enveloped upon a project, ('Streets' Londons Young Homeless) where he interviewed, recorded and photographed individuals that lived on the streets.
"Driving around London, it is not difficult to find young living rough on the streets. After explaining what I was doing, most of the people that I approached agreed to talk about their experiences and be photographed. " - Michael Heffernan
Prior to taking the subjects portraits he taped up a four foot white paper background to a nearby wall, in order to achieve a professional style portrait; using a handheld camera, outside without the benefit of a studio. This process inspired me to endeavour upon carrying out a similar investigation, using a similar process in order to achieve a better outlook on homeless individual's situations.
Heffernan enveloped upon a project, ('Streets' Londons Young Homeless) where he interviewed, recorded and photographed individuals that lived on the streets.
"Driving around London, it is not difficult to find young living rough on the streets. After explaining what I was doing, most of the people that I approached agreed to talk about their experiences and be photographed. " - Michael Heffernan
Prior to taking the subjects portraits he taped up a four foot white paper background to a nearby wall, in order to achieve a professional style portrait; using a handheld camera, outside without the benefit of a studio. This process inspired me to endeavour upon carrying out a similar investigation, using a similar process in order to achieve a better outlook on homeless individual's situations.
What I particularly admire about Heffernan's work is its natural presentation. Each individual he photographed has different facial expressions and mannerisms. His intention to do this was to show the homeless in a natural and honest perspective; rather than how they are commonly portrayed in mainstream media. Each photograph generates a sense of comfortability between the subject and the camera. This allows the audience to approach the imagery without a sense of awkwardness, guilt or even displeasure that is commonly projected upon the topic of homelessness and homeless people.
In addition, Heffernan has intended to pay close attention to detail in this series. Throughout the images Heffernan has emphasised the specifics of each subjects appearance which has created a very fine effect. As well as this, Heffernan's use of black&white photography reinforces the detail of the subject's appearance. Without the conspicuous nature of brighter colours, Heffernan's audiences focus is drawn to the entirety of the photographs, rather than particular aspects. I feel that this is an important aspect when portraiting the homeless; as you can sufficiently and equally emphasise each visual characteristics of the subjects and draw a distinct attention to details and personal features. The attention to detail, furthermore, is a appropriate representation of the homeless's rough lifestyle. Highlighting distinct features of appearance allows Heffernan to greatly elucidate the harsh conditions and living standards of his subjects. This also influences his audience to relate and understand the negativity of their conditions further. I desire to attempt to create a similar style of portraiture; a type which will present my subject in a naturalistic manner, and in hope, promote an improvement of attitudes towards the homeless condition.
In addition, Heffernan has intended to pay close attention to detail in this series. Throughout the images Heffernan has emphasised the specifics of each subjects appearance which has created a very fine effect. As well as this, Heffernan's use of black&white photography reinforces the detail of the subject's appearance. Without the conspicuous nature of brighter colours, Heffernan's audiences focus is drawn to the entirety of the photographs, rather than particular aspects. I feel that this is an important aspect when portraiting the homeless; as you can sufficiently and equally emphasise each visual characteristics of the subjects and draw a distinct attention to details and personal features. The attention to detail, furthermore, is a appropriate representation of the homeless's rough lifestyle. Highlighting distinct features of appearance allows Heffernan to greatly elucidate the harsh conditions and living standards of his subjects. This also influences his audience to relate and understand the negativity of their conditions further. I desire to attempt to create a similar style of portraiture; a type which will present my subject in a naturalistic manner, and in hope, promote an improvement of attitudes towards the homeless condition.
Interviews
To start my investigation I decided to go about retrieving information about attitudes towards the homeless. To go about doing this I began to interview local homeless people in my area. This provided me with a great outlook on their situation and allowed me to recieve some first hand knowledge. With everyone that I interview I request to take a portrait image at the end of our discussion. I used a white sheet as a backdrop, unless I already have an appropriate white background. This was inspired by Michael Heffernan's series, 'Streets' - Londons Young Homeless. I go about doing this to achieve a good quality image of the individuals in an urban environment. I also chose to present the pictures in black and white, in order to motivate the audiences focus on the subject and image as a whole, rather than more conspicuous aspects of the photograph, if it were in colour.
Paul and Nora
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The first person I interviewed was Paul who owned a dog, Nora. Every morning I walk past him, yet I had never engaged in conversation with him. Therefore I was anticipating what he had to say, about his outlooks on attitudes towards the homeless and his experiences with institutional or government support. Paul was very willing and enthusiastic to be interviewed and gave off a very social, benevolent nature.
To start the interview, after asking his name, I asked him what his opinion was, about the attitude towards the homeless locally. He responded saying that he felt that there was a strong sense of "ignorance" towards him and other homeless individuals. I then told him about the article I read, this triggered an aggravated response. He went on to say that "when I'm outside the soup kitchen, the police threaten to arrest me if I do not move from the area." And that he does not feel morally obliged to offer any help to them, due to the way that he is treated; constantly he feels a "lack of respect" and humility from the police. I asked Paul about his situation and how he reached it. He told me that approximately five years ago the remaining members of his family died. He said that it was hard to cope when you don't have anyone to depend on and that's what lead him to "lose his way". Furthermore, I asked him whether or not he recieves instituional help from charities, for example. He stated that apart from the local Soup Kitchen, run by the church, there is no local charities that focus on helping the homeless people. On the contrary, he later eplained that there used to be a hostel that provided food and shelter in North Fincheley (20 minutes from my local area). However, its funding was taken away, which meant it had to close down. Apparently the reason behind this was that a new building had to be built in that area, however he then informed me that that space has been abandoned since. I was unable to get a protrait of Nora, as she was sleeping and apparently has a phobia of Cameras. Furthermore, I felt that it was not my obligation to use Paul as a photographic subject for a long period of time. Therefore, I attempted to obtain a satisfactory portrait of him in a short time period; thus, I only captured a small number of images. On the contrary, I strongly feel that my final portrait is satisfactory, and I am very pleased with the outcome. I feel that the information that Paul had provided myself is related to the governments' stated intentions to decrease the amount of funding and support given to the homeless community. For instance, the negative polic approach outside the local Soup Kitchen, and removal of the North Fincheley hostels funding. However, possibly this plan could have been in full process earlier than I initially understood. |
Process
Observing the work of Michael Hefferman influenced my choice of presenting the images in a black&white format. I feel that black&white portraiture enhances the appearance of the subject , as well as highlighting and satisfying the presentation of detail, tone and lighting.
To achieve the black&white format I used the graphic editing software, photoshop. However, before changing the image from colour to black&white I first altered the pictures levels, curves, exposure and sharpness; this was to ensure that the detail and lighting of the image was at an optimum standard. After this process I then changed the format to black&white and chose which 'colours' to emphasise in the image, also adjusting the tones further.
Physical Editing Process
Observing the work of Michael Hefferman influenced my choice of presenting the images in a black&white format. I feel that black&white portraiture enhances the appearance of the subject , as well as highlighting and satisfying the presentation of detail, tone and lighting.
To achieve the black&white format I used the graphic editing software, photoshop. However, before changing the image from colour to black&white I first altered the pictures levels, curves, exposure and sharpness; this was to ensure that the detail and lighting of the image was at an optimum standard. After this process I then changed the format to black&white and chose which 'colours' to emphasise in the image, also adjusting the tones further.
Physical Editing Process
1 - Firstly, I uploaded the raw image to photoshop.
3 - I then changed the image by implemented a black & white filter
4 - Then I altered specific colours intensities under the black&white filter in order to further enhance the image and provide it with a harder appearance.
5 - Conclusively, to finish off elevating the images appearance I sharpened the entire image, then used Photoshop's 'Smart Sharpen' tool to bring out the detail of more specific areas of the image.
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2 - Next, I went about changing the brightness, contrast and levels of the image in order to enhance its visual quality and dynamic.
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George 'Slasher' Donnelly
I met George unexpectedly, therefore I did not have a portable backdrop with me. Notwithstanding, I captured George's portrait and then digitally mastered the photograph later on 'Photoshop'. This allowed me to replicate the same presentation and effect that would result from using a white backdrop when capturing the photo. Below is the final product, and a "before" and "after" short slideshow.
After editing the video, I captured a number of stills. After doing this I edited them on 'Photoshop', to consist with my black and white portraiture theme. The stills are shown below.
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When interviewing George, I decided to incorporate another medium of documentation. So, rather than only photographing and writing the interviews verbal content on paper, I went about filming the majority our discussion as well.
When I first approached George, he was very willing to engage in conversation; after I explained to him my intentions and participation with the soup kitchens operation. Prior to filming, George informed me that he would be returning to Glasgow during Christmas, to visit family that he has not seen in over 6 years. George obtained his nickname "Slasher" from his friends around 13 years ago. He has an ongoing dependency on alcohol. Such alcoholism is especially evident, as he appeared on Graham Norton's "Millenium Eve Show" on the game "Drunks say the funniest things."
After watching this clip, George's alcohol induced decline became truly apparent to me. In the interview, when asking about the causes for George to "reach this situation in his life", he inferred that it is "all self-inflicted" and that "[he] is to blame." Stating this demonstrates George's self awareness and acceptance. I found the commodification of George in this video to personally be quite upsetting. I feel that it evokes the lack of knowledge, humility and understanding towards certain individuals and their negative moral direction. Here, rather than treating a potential alcoholic with a desire to help him, they are exploiting this condition for the benefit of television. Further, although George expressed particular values through the use of profanities and aggressive tones, they seemingly are a just response to the lack of attention towards his situation. Ultimately, George came across to be a humble man, who wrongly acted when faced with the continuous pressures of life.
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To develop my knowledge of the public attitude and institutional help towards to homeless in the area, I interviewed Eric, who regularly goes to the soup kitchen I started volunteering at. Although Eric is not homeless, he has been using the soup kitchen's services for nearly six years. Prior to interviewing him my colleague, Maggie, informed me that he was mentally quite unstable, yet was very willing to talk and answer any questions I had. Initially Eric was quite uneasy, but once we exercised our discussion his speech was lucid and informative. Eric discovered the local soup kitchen from "word of mouth." However, initially he went to the Wilston Green, Union Chapel Baptist Church in Highbury. I asked him whether or not he felt the homeless people were being discriminated against locally. He went on to say that he did not believe that are discriminated against, at least "not in [his] experience." He then told me that he has visited a number of soup kitchens (all run by churches) but that for a number of them, their funding was either entirely removed or 'cut'. Similarly, in a previous interview, Paul notified the decline of various institutions funding. Therefore, this only developed or potentially concluded my apprehension of the government's opinions towards supportive homeless institutions. In addition, It became evident that this particular soup kitchen was the most popularly thriving one in the area. Unfortunately, Eric was not comfortable with me capturing a direct 'head-shot' of him. Therefore, I took indirect photo's of him, while he was conversing with my colleague Maggie.
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Eric |
Kevin
I met Kevin, 54 at the Soup Kitchens annual Christmas party. After agreeing to me photographing him, he also agreed to an interview. Kevin manifested a very dry humour. When asking to take his photo he said "Of course you can, but I'm rather ugly." However, he evoked a friendly attitude, and I was very comfortable talking to him. Kevin has been attending the local soup kitchen regularly for just over two years. Kevin, however, is not homeless, as he lives in government provided housing. Albeit, prior to receiving accommodation Kevin was forced to live on the streets as he could no longer afford to live in his house. I asked him about the process of applying for housing. He said it was faster than he anticipated, but that he was a "priority case". He told me a number of his friends who have applied for housing are still homeless and regularly require his house for shelter. I asked how he initially reached this condition, he explained bluntly and honestly, that he "never [has] been very lucky", that is all. With regards to public impressions, he said that when he was living rough "no-one paid attention to him." and in regards to the police he stated that he as never experienced any discrimination towards him. All in all, our conversation was very direct, as Kevin did not provide any emotional commitment to the situation. Kevin's rational approach to discussion gave me digestible information related to the homeless. |
Mischa Christen
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Photographer Mischa Christen underwent a Paris based project where he photographed dozens of Afghan asylum-seekers. The majority of the subjects were young males and unaccompanied minors. Christen went about presenting the asylum-seekers through coloured portraiture and the urban areas where they all slept. Each portrait has a corresponding image of the area each subject sleeps. I find the accompanying the subjects portraits with where they sleep on the streets to have a profound effect on the audiences perception of their disadvantaged situations. I wish to incorporate a similar approach to illustrating my future subjects situations through my photography. |
The Soup Kitchen
After speaking to Paul, I felt the necessary obligation to visit the soup kitchen in order to offer support, as well as achieve a clarified understanding of its operation. I previously notified in my interview with Paul, that the soup kitchens services are the only form of institutional help that is offered to the homeless in the North London area. This provided me with more of an ambition to explore it first-hand; as it would be extremely informative and help me with my photo-journalistic investigations development.
Being informed about the soup kitchen and looking in Mischa Christen's work influenced me to capture the physical places where homeless people commonly go to. Therefore below are a number of edited images that I thought clearly display the the operation and appearance of the local soup kitchen, where many homeless people congregate. When entering the soup kitchens building, I eventually was greeted by the soup kitchens co-organiser Lucy. After requesting to help volunteer at the soup kitchen and providing my name and age, she responded by saying that "I was too young to help serve the food" and that "the minimum age [was] 19 years old". However, she agreed to let me help with the washing up, cleaning and kitchen duties. I asked her why their was an age limit for volunteers. She explained that in the past their has been accusations of "paedophilia and violence" geared towards the homeless people. As well as this many of them are known drug users and alocoholics. Therefore, I could be at risk volunteering in their presence. I was particularly surprised by the violence and and paedophilia orientated statement, as the individuals that I had interviewed locally seemingly were kind people. However, I was aware of the impact drugs and alcohol had on individual action and decisions. After this discourse, I asked whether or not this reception of people was common. Lucy said, "Yes! In fact, we're very lucky that you came today." Since two of the members of staff were not volunteering on that day. I then asked whether or not their are similar operations locally. She then confirmed that this soup kitchen is one of the only forms of institutional help offered to the homeless in the North London area; except two other soup kitchens run by churches. This clarified my surprised reaction in regards to the reception of people, but also clarified Paul's statement in our previous interview. Paul explained that the majority of institutions geared towards helping the homeless fundings were cut, thus leading them to close down.
Julian Germain - For every minute you are angry you lose sixty seconds of happiness.are angry you lose sixty seconds of happiness, 2005
Germain's series of photographs, made over 8 years, documents the quiet, contemplative existence of Charles Snelling; an elderly man living alone in a small house in Portsmouth, shown alongside pages from Snelling’s own photo albums "I met Charles Albert Lucien Snelling on a Saturday in April, 1992. He lived in a typical two up two down terraced house amongst many other two up two down terraced houses… It was yellow and orange. In that respect it was totally different from every other house on the street…. ….Charlie was a simple, gentle, man. He loved flowers and the names of flowers. He loved colour and surrounded himself with colour. He loved his wife. Without ever trying or intending to, he showed me that the most important things in life cost nothing at all. He was my antidote to modern living.’ Julian Germain, from the book ‘For every minute you are angry you lose sixty seconds of happiness."
Through photographically exploring Charles AL. Snelling's life, Germain captured a series of straight-forward and highly detailed images. As well as, capturing Snelling himself, Germain also took images of various different aspects of his surroundings, that made up his sphere. This ranged from flowers to tea cups. Firstly, I strongly admired the influence Snelling's philosophy had on Germain, "Without ever trying or intending to, he showed me that the most important things in life cost nothing at all." I felt that endeavouring upon investigating the homeless will similarly indirectly expand my knowledge and perspective of possession, wealth and ultimate happiness. Secondly, Germain's approach to capturing various details in Snelling's surroundings particularly appeal to me. Therefore, as well as obtaining interviews and portraits, I intend to investigate and capture the entirety of the soup kitchen that I will start volunteering at. |
After being exposed to the work of Germain, I wished to develop my documentary approach to photographing the Soup kitchen. Germain's attention to detail in his photography encouraged me to observe the soup kitchen more specifically; photographing various items and aspects that contribute to the kitchens appearance as well as its on-going operation. Doing this allows me to create a more detailed image and perspective of the homeless's sphere, as well as efficiently show the effort, care and the pride the volunteers take in what they do, as well as visually what occurs behind closed doors in the soup kitchen.
Below are a number of edited images of the soup kitchen. When I exhibit my photographs I intend to present the images in a similar fashion. For instance, positioning the signs at the top as they epitomise the work ethic and care the volunteers possess in regards to their work. These three images will then be 'subheaded' by the other photographs as I feel they demonstrate the amount of work and mind that is projected upon the soup kitchens operation. Further, I created a short montage video to clearly show the operation of the soup kitchen. In this video I have incorporated shots from a first person perspective. This is to provide my audience with a realistic visual outlook on what takes place in the soup kitchen quarters. I combined the image with music and used editing techniques to make sure the video was visually powerful.
Below are a number of edited images of the soup kitchen. When I exhibit my photographs I intend to present the images in a similar fashion. For instance, positioning the signs at the top as they epitomise the work ethic and care the volunteers possess in regards to their work. These three images will then be 'subheaded' by the other photographs as I feel they demonstrate the amount of work and mind that is projected upon the soup kitchens operation. Further, I created a short montage video to clearly show the operation of the soup kitchen. In this video I have incorporated shots from a first person perspective. This is to provide my audience with a realistic visual outlook on what takes place in the soup kitchen quarters. I combined the image with music and used editing techniques to make sure the video was visually powerful.
The soup kitchen has been run by the church for just over 20 years. It recieves support from the local Sainsburys, Waitrose and various other local churches. I found Lucy, and the other volunteers to have a very positive attitude, and were very enthusiastic with helping the disadvantaged people. Notwithstanding, I found some of the soup kitchens clients attitudes towards the staff to be indifferent, and I was relatively displeased with some people's lack of respect for the work that is carried out to help support them. Nonetheless, the majority (almost the totality) of people attending were noble people who fully deserved and in some circumstances required the support that is being offered to them.
I also spoke to the Soup Kitchen's founder, Martin. He disagreed with Lucy in regards to letting me work in the prescence of the people we were serving. He explained that if it wasn't for the law I would be able to participate in serving the food and that I would not be approached or harmed. I asked Martin what initially motivated him to start the Soup Kitchen. He went on to say that "There never has been much help for the homeless." and it seemed his Christian faith was also a key motivation for his benevolent action.
Ultimately, It seems that some information I gathered from the local homeless, in regards to the way they are treated was misleading and bias. This is due to the confirmation from the staff - such as Lucy - of their alcohol orientated violence and eleged accusations of paedophilia. However, this is not a generalisation, but it is evident that some individuals are accumulating a bad reputation for the persons who deserve a large sense of respect and humility towards themselves, and their disadvantaged situation.
Ultimately, It seems that some information I gathered from the local homeless, in regards to the way they are treated was misleading and bias. This is due to the confirmation from the staff - such as Lucy - of their alcohol orientated violence and eleged accusations of paedophilia. However, this is not a generalisation, but it is evident that some individuals are accumulating a bad reputation for the persons who deserve a large sense of respect and humility towards themselves, and their disadvantaged situation.
The Christmas Party
Every year, the soup kitchen and church hosts an annual Christmas party, for a number of disadvantaged people. This year I was able to document the entire event. I went about doing this through the visual mediums of photography and video. Further, I aimed to project the techniques and understanding I gained from my documentation of the teachers' protest and my curatorship tasks research, on to this work. The party evoked a great sense of union and festivity. Through my documentations, I wished to show the homeless in a familiar perspective, a festive nature. I intended to display all aspects of the event; from the small details (similar to Julian Germain's photographic approach) to the more apparent aspects, such as the relationships between persons and the evident undertakings that took place, such as a magic show. This is in order to break social divisions between the homeless and my audience; although all people are encumbered with various social, cultural, economical and political contingencies, ultimately, the similarities of human beings outweigh the differences. It is this notion that I wished to exemplify through the entirety of my project into homelessness. I wished to create a better understanding of a variety of people's disadvantaged social conditions, but also the endeavours which people exercise to remedy it.
A New Years Celebration at the Soup Kitchen
In the second week of the new year, 2014 the soup kitchen hosted a New Years celebratory gathering in order to commemorate the new year. Another reason for the celebration, however, was to encourage an increase of soup kitchen clients from the Romanian demographic. Research shows that one in ten of London's homeless are from Romania. From May to October 2013 "170 Romanian people have been newly registered as homeless" - Daily Mail - according to recent charity figures. That's 9.8 percent of the total amount of individuals registered all together. This, however, has surfaced more research findings. According to charity figures, 53 percent of London's homeless community are from outside the UK. Therefore, the soup kitchen felt that these were good circumstances to act upon and pursue supporting the Romanian people. To do this they requested support from the Romanian embassy, who attended the event, to help advertise the soup kitchen to the Romanian homeless population. Secondly, a teacher attended the event to represent my school. The school plans to exercise numerous mediums of fund raising to help support the soup kitchens cause and financial needs. In addition, the BBC attended the event, and interviewed a number of the employees and guests; including members of the Romanian embassy. This made the issue of immigrant orientated homelessness incredibly apparent to me. So, I felt extremely obliged to document it in order to further my research on the homeless situation in London. Martin, the soup kitchens founder, stated in an interview with the BBC that "If we entered an unfamiliar country, finding ourselves with diminishing resources, it's sometimes good to go to a place where you can have some food, some comfort and some company."
When documenting this event, I trained my lens on all aspects of the event, the homeless clients, the attractions, such as the musicians and magic acts and significantly the BBC interviews. Julian Germain's detailed approach to his work when photographically exploring Charles AL. Snelling's life had a relevant influence on this. Although, due to the somewhat important status of the event, it seemed imperative to document the event in its entirety anyway. Below are the final edits of the images that I felt best captured the whole event.
When documenting this event, I trained my lens on all aspects of the event, the homeless clients, the attractions, such as the musicians and magic acts and significantly the BBC interviews. Julian Germain's detailed approach to his work when photographically exploring Charles AL. Snelling's life had a relevant influence on this. Although, due to the somewhat important status of the event, it seemed imperative to document the event in its entirety anyway. Below are the final edits of the images that I felt best captured the whole event.
The Big Issue
Due to the Big Issue Foundation's extremely evident impact on the well-being of the homeless, I feel that it would be wise to look into and involve myself into the organisation further. Researching the organisation will allow me to drastically extend upon my photographic project into homelessness. To begin with, I am going to endeavour to interview several Big Issue vendors in order to obtain legitimate, first-hand information about their experiences with the organisation.
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The Big Issue is the world's most widely circulated street newspaper and published in four continents. It is written by professional journalists and sold by homeless individuals. The foundation was founded by John Bird and Gordon Roddick in September 1991. The Big Issue is one of the UK's leading social businesses, and exist to give homeless people an opportunity to earn a legitimate income, thereby helping them reintegrate into mainstream society. Initially the charity was founded as a response to the increasing numbers of homeless people in London. In 2001 the magazine sold nearly 300,000 copies. Between 2007 and 2011, however, the circulation of the magazine declined to 167,000 to less than 125,000.
To become a vendor, one must be homeless, vulnerably housed or marginalised in some way. The Big Issue recognises, however, that for many people, being housed is only the first stage in getting off the streets; therefore, The Big Issue foundation exists to support vendors in gaining control of their lives by tackling the various issues which lead to homelessness. There are five localised editions of the magazine sold throughout the United Kingdom and vendors buy The Big Issue for £1.25 and sell it for £2.50. The magazine is also produced and sold in Australia, Ireland, South Korea, South Africa, Japan, Namibia, Kenya, Malawi and Taiwan. |
Joe
When interviewing people, I right down notes on what we have discussed to help me remember and write up our conversation in detail. To the right are the notes I gathered from me and Joe's conversation, as well as a number of the questions that I planned to asked him.
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Before interviewing Joe, I noticed that he was constantly giving directions to the public. I then asked him about it, he said that he "enjoys helping people", but that it also "helps [him] with business."
Joe has been working with 'The Big Issue' institution for over three years. He has been Homeless since he first registered with the Big Issue. Joe does not claim welfare benefits. He informed me that he prefers to independently fund his living. As well as this, the entire process is seemingly a large challenge for homeless individuals. It seems that the homeless are not prioritized, with relevance to welfare claims. I have inferred this, since in my interview with George Donnelly he also referenced the lack of support he was given towards his homeless situation. George stated that, he could "[never get his] name on the waiting list for housing" benefit. I wanted to know if 'The Big Issue' go out of their way to find, and offer people work. He confirmed that commonly, one should go to the headquarters in Vauxal and register there. Joe said that it is a simple process, and that the Big Issue employees make it a lot easier, with their "positive attitudes" and sense of understanding. Joe reached this situation in his life, as as result of a divorce dispute, which evidently, was not in his favour. Prior to this, Joe owned six businesses, some of which were a general store, warehouses, a milkman firm and a burger restaurant. However, the divorce stripped him of these enterprises. Now, Joe uses a car he saved up for, with his friend, last year, as a means of shelter. He said that "it doesn't both [him]" and that he's just happy to "have a roof over [his] head". All in all, Joe came across as a proud, yet humble person. He seemingly takes pride in independence, whatever the circumstances. |
Final Piece ideas
When considering possible approaches to creating my final pieces I began to think about how I could encompass both the information gained from my journalism and my portraits together in one piece. This led me to investigate incorporating quotes with each one of the portraits that I had gathered from my subjects that I have met throughout my investigation. I feel that doing this will give my audience a greater insight into the thoughts and opinions of my subjects, albeit at the same time preserve the focus on the photographic portraiture. To carry out this idea, I retrieved a single significant quote from my notepad I used during my investigation and wrote it out directly on a sheet of transparent acetate. I then placed the acetate sheet directly on the corresponding portrait. I find that the effect of this successfully provides my audience with a better knowledge into the topic of homelessness, which my work orientates. It also, in effect, gives the subjects in my images a voice. Although an image alone provides a story in itself, incorporating text in my images clarifies the topic of the art-work, and effectively encourages the audience to consider the opinions from the subjects perspectives. I feel that incorporating all my portraits together in my exhibition, with the addition of their quotations, will create a visual story of my photojournalistic journey into homelessness.
Although I like this idea of incorporating writing into the portraits I don't feel that it provides an accurate reflection of life in the soup kitchen itself. Furthermore, I was unable to get the subjects in the photo to directly write down their quotes individually. I find that this removes their own stamp from their portraits. Therefore, to refine my idea for my final piece, I am going to attempt to successfully create a reflective representation of my experience with the soup kitchen and the people that work there.
Final piece
My final piece is an installation of separate elements from my project. I wanted to present the people, the place, the systems all at once whilst using the pots, pans and food to transport the viewer.
The works of Rosenthal, Munita and Blue encompass relevant world issues in their photographic works. After exploring their photographic project I decided to base my own photographic investigation on the topic of homelessness; an issue with much relevance to the area in which I live - London. Through participating in various interviews with homeless individuals across London, I was able to obtain much information regarding the topic of homelessness. This gave me a direct insight as well into the opinions and perspectives of homeless individuals themselves. This allowed me to obtain information directly from the sources, and not from any secondary sources. Through this interviews I was encouraged to visit and participate in work that goes towards supporting the homeless issues in London. I began volunteering in a Soup Kitchen on a weekly basis. This allowed me to interview volunteers and see for myself how much work and selfless effort goes towards helping disadvantaged people. The whole investigation was an enlightening experience and highlighted the vastness and seriousness of homelessness as an issue in the United Kingdom. Through capturing the portraits of my subjects, I was able to put a number of faces to the evident problems homeless; hopefully encouraging my audience to gain a more advanced insight into the issues and a better understanding on the range of individuals effected by it also. To elucidate the journalistic aspects of my investigation and to provide my audience with a greater insight into my subjects perspectives, I incorporated handwritten quotes on my portraits. This supplements each portrait with its own significant piece of information and opens a small window into the experiences and thoughts of my subjects that could not have been so successfully achieved through the portraits alone. Ultimately, I feel that my final pieces successfully portray the topic of homelessness and through the handwritten quotes make each image authentic and significant; as well as giving a brief voice to the people in my photographs.