“Among You”

You will always have the poor among you, but you will not always have me.  —John 12:8 NIV

The work is a meditation on the beauty and humanity found on the mean streets.

You who dwell at the margins

of your community are

brought to light

within the architecture of these birch panels.

At the moment of your gaze,

the space between guest and host merges and

a calligraphic imprint in the heart of the city remains.

I dedicate this work to all those who find their way to the patio for conversation, or music, or a meal, or clothing and essentials, or worship.  I am grateful to the people who have willingly allowed me to photograph them for the purposes of making this art.  The net proceeds support the church’s homeless mission.

Within these economic times, many programs that offer direct care to those in need go underfunded or close.  The Monday lunches provide a refuge for each attendee from internal or external hardships encountered in his or her daily life.  Here, inclusivity for all is cultivated in a town of exclusivities for the few.  Compassion resides in the in-taking from wherever you come.

The drawings take days to emerge and it is a heartfelt goodbye once they are released from the charcoal at-hand.  I chose charcoal as it best conveys the grit of the street.  Many years ago I met with a friend who had just returned from a backpacking tour abroad.  I was struck by the quality of her India-print skirt so similar to mine yet so different.  Later, I came to realize that it was the sand, the constant wear on the fibers, and the weight of the dirt that made it thus.

Clothing often is given from those who have passed away.  The love of the lost one is found anew.  This work of compassion involves the clothing off your back, on your back, your countenance, your gestures in all your singularity and humanity through drawing the weight of your world.  In a community where surface appearance holds sway, I am drawn to you.

Lisa Lesniak

March 2012