by Brooke McAfee
bemcafee@indiana.edu | bemcafee24601
The photographs featured in Pictura Gallery’s exhibit, “What Does Bloomington Look Like To Me?” provide insight into the life of Bloomington’s homeless community. They also show how they are similar to any other person, Bloom Magazine editor-in-chief Malcolm Abrams said.
“They were the same kinds of pictures most people would take,” Abrams said. “We got pictures of sunrises and sunsets, flowers and everyday life.”
The exhibit, featuring photography taken by members of Bloomington’s homeless community, is open from 5 to 8 p.m. Friday at Pictura Gallery.
Abrams said the project started when he saw a New York Times story about a Paris exhibition of work by homeless photographers. He decided to implement this idea in Bloomington so the homeless community could show the town from their point of view.
With the help of Shalom Community Center and New Hope for Families, the photography project began. Both organizations are homeless shelters in Bloomington.
Groups of people from the homeless community were selected as photographers, and professional photographers volunteered to provide cameras and give photography lessons, Bloom managing editor Carmen Siering said.
Bloom received more than 5,000 photographs of Bloomington from the homeless community, Siering said. Out of the thousands of photographs, they selected the highlights for a story in the December/January issue of Bloom Magazine. A benefit held by Shalom in November also gave the photographers an opportunity to display and sell their work.
Siering, who wrote Bloom’s story about the project, said it was an eye-opening experience.
“I was there from the very beginning so I could understand the process and get to know the photographers so they would feel comfortable with me,” Siering said. “I wanted them to know who I was. I wanted to be a person whom they could share their stories with.”
The photographers did an amazing job, Siering said, and the project gives people experiencing homelessness a voice through both their photography and their stories.
Abrams said he learned about the importance of Shalom, which gives people a place to stay from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday.
Without Shalom, there would be many people out on the streets who wouldn’t have a place to shower, eat lunch, leave their personal belongings or get their mail, Abrams said.
Forrest Gilmore, the executive director of Shalom, said it has been amazing to watch the photographers’ experiences come to life.
They have a sense of pride and accomplishment, Gilmore said, and he loves seeing the joy on the photographers’ faces as their work is praised and purchased.
The project has had an effect on both the photographers and the viewers because showing the experiences of people experiencing homelessness through their perspective inspires empathy, Gilmore said.
“‘Homeless’ is a big, scary word, but when you humanize and personalize it, it helps fight fear and prejudice,” Gilmore said.
