Good gracious The 930 keeps presenting work that I find inspiring, challenging and interesting. The new show “Homeless: Telling Our Own Stories” is no exception. The show, curated by Jesse Eubanks and Michael Winters, is an “exhibit that uses photographs, drawings, audio and video footage as
mediums for people who are homeless to document their own lives and
tell their stories through art.”

I can’t say that I’m proud we have this project here in Louisville because there is no pride in our city having an estimated 12,000 homeless people. I am proud though that this project has given a voice to the participants. This isn’t a run of the mill art exhibit, it’s an exhibit with a purpose as well: “The goal is to allow people who have never experienced homelessness to
step inside the struggles of living on the streets. The intention is to
encourage people who are not homeless to build relationships with
people who are.”

See this show. This is important work with social, cultural and artist value. Seriously. See this show.

An opening reception for the show happens Saturday February 2, 2008. 7-11p.m.
The show runs
February 1- March 2, 2008.

The 930
930 Mary St.
Louisville, KY 40204

More details about the project after the jump.

“When you’re homeless, February is the most dangerous month of the year.
Each year, several people on Louisville’s streets freeze to death or
catch severe illness. Others simply live in the physical ache of the
perpetual cold, waiting until morning comes to find a place of warmth.
That is why February was chosen to debut HOMELESS: TELLING OUR OWN
STORIES.”

From The 930’s information about the exhibit here are a few details about a couple specific aspects of the project:

“One project in the exhibit is a series of self-documenting
photographs. Using disposable cameras, homeless people took time
documenting their lives – taking pictures of friends, personal
treasures, the city and their daily routines.”

Photograph by Linda Ferguson.

“Another project is by local artist Mark Anthony Mulligan. Mulligan’s
work has been featured in a variety of exhibits around the country and
is in the permanent collections of the New Orleans Museum of Art and
the Folk Art Museum in Morehead, KY. One of the unique things about
Mulligan is that he has been homeless on and off again for the last 20
years and has been diagnosed with a severe mental illness. In 2001,
Mulligan spent six months using a Kinko’s on Bardstown Rd. as his
regular art-creating space. Sixteen hours a day, Mulligan would draw
his brightly colored city landscapes that featured his affection for
oil signs and his narratives of how he viewed the world and himself.
After completing each piece, Mulligan would simply get up and leave the
store. Cameron Deeb, a Kinko’s employee, attentively collected the left
behind artwork and as a result has one of the largest collections of
Mulligan’s work today.

Drawing by Mark Anthony Mulligan