After some consideration, I decided to take my project and direct it to the homeless people of Paris in particular.
Artist Luke Jerram explains;
“For every person you see sleeping on the streets, there are many others sleeping in hostels, squats and other forms of unsatisfactory and insecure accommodation. I was interested to see whether the sculpture would be ignored and treated like street furniture as homeless people often are in a city. I hope the artwork will raise awareness of the problem and that the public will feel moved to support the charity, to make a difference.”
This highlighted sentence is the main focus and reason behind my project. In a city like Paris, most people don’t see homeless people, or at least choose not to. I want to create an artwork that puts a light on the homeless and giving them their right place in society after a long time of being shunned.
On top of their difficult situations already, they are not acknowledged as part of society. Whether they are locals, foreigners, or refugees, a person living in a city should have a voice and be seen in the city they live in despite their living conditions.
In this time, in particular, they are not only invisible but in danger.
“But in times when we are advised to stay at home in quarantine or self-isolate, it becomes evident that it is the main health setting in our lives, and one cannot enjoy their right to health without a safe home. Living without a home, rough sleeping, or staying in temporary accommodation is very damaging for health. Homeless people often have many complex health issues, including tri-morbidity (the co-existence of physical and mental health and addiction problems). Homeless people also face a number of barriers to accessing health care as well as public health information. Due to their compromised immune systems, poor nutrition and hygiene, and long-term residence in overcrowded shelters they are at risk of contracting contagious diseases.”
https://epha.org/the-impact-of-the-covid-19-crisis-on-homelessness/
“Giving voice to marginalized persons, the artist included their narratives in the city’s public discourse.
Projection organized as part of La Biennale de Montréal, co-produced by the Musée d’art contemporain de Montréal, the Quartier des Spectacles, and the Phi Centre, in collaboration with St. Michael’s Mission.”
https://www.krzysztofwodiczko.com/public-projections#/homeless-projection-place-des-arts/
Painting, making a collage, or just representing a homeless person from memory shows that they are not that invisible. In fact, last week I had not intended that homeless people would be the main topic of my project. I just wanted to represent and illustrate people that have left an impact on me during my time in Paris. And strangely enough, most of them were actually homeless.
- Idea 1: Create a digital collage of different homeless people I have met in Paris, add the face to a map where they reside. It is nonetheless their homes.
- Idea 2: Make a painting from memory of the different homeless people I have met in Paris with bright colors.
Looking into different artists and works on homeless people I realized that if it’s a photograph or a painting, they are often in black and white. But the homeless don’t need to be muted or shut even more. The two artworks that I have included here are one of few actually giving the homeless a voice and making them visible instead of just documenting their unfortunate situations.