In 2013 I gave myself a photo assignment. Pick 13 subjects, and take 13 snapshots of each… 13x13x13. At some point during the project I decided it’d be much more interesting to open this assignment to anyone who wants to participate. I’m glad I did. The following series of 13 comes from local photographer Arleen Hodge . These are portraits of 13 Rochesterians she’s met on the streets. Arleen says she is grateful to call these people her “friends.”
“They all have stories and they are truly a great bunch of men who are suffering another facet of the human condition,” Arleen reasons. “When I’m shooting underground for a night, these guys look out for me. There are those who are quick to judge… but these would be the guys to jump in and save your life.”
I can think of no better subject for this merry time of year – and less than a week after we were forced to face the facts; that Rochester stands as the fifth poorest city in the United States. It’s not just a city problem. According to that report by The Rochester Area Community Foundation, 160,000 people living within the nine-county region are living in poverty. These are our neighbors. Our friends. These could easily be portraits of you or me…
In 2013 I gave myself a photo assignment. Pick 13 subjects, and take 13 snapshots of each… 13x13x13. Turns out this was much more work than I thought. So I’ve been accepting submissions from others. Today’s series of 13 comes to us from Tiny Fish Printing , a custom apparel printing company located near the public market.
T-shirts are an American staple. We all have our favorite one that we wear until our belly button shows through. They’re a great way to show our support for our favorite local institutions… restaurants, bands, clubs, etc. They allow us to show off our creative side, even we don’t have a creative bone in our body. And best of all, they keep us from being naked.
Uh, ok… Let’s just take a look at 13 awesome local t-shirt designs…
In 2013 I gave myself a photo assignment: Take 13 snapshots of 13 different subjects. Early on, someone suggested I do a series of traffic signal boxes – you know, the ones with the murals painted on them? At first I thought the idea was a little too obvious. I also thought many of the murals to be a little cliché. But soon I began to notice these things everywhere I looked. And then I felt like I couldn’t not do it.
While they may not be master works of art, these murals are definitely a unique part of our landscape. Some of them are kind of folksy; some are tongue-in-cheek; and many tell a story about the neighborhood. So, with the help of my friend Nicholas Swann , here are 13 of our favorite murals on traffic signal boxes…
Oh, and you’ll notice an extra one at the end. I’ve decided to paint one in my own neighborhood. You can tell me what you think…
In 2013 I gave myself a photo assignment. Pick 13 subjects, and take 13 snapshots of each. Simple. Right? I thought so. I started in February with 13 mailboxes and followed up with 13 storefronts. And that’s where I left off. Sometimes I just can’t keep up with my own crazy ideas. Luckily, my good friend Chris Clemens from The Burned Over District blog has stepped in to help me out with 13 houses of worship. The following images (in no particular order) are from all over the Rochester region. They add yet another dimension to this portrait of us…
I’ve given myself a photo assignment for 2013. Pick 13 subjects, and take 13 snapshots of each. Simple. We started last month with 13 mailboxes. This month I turned my lens on what I thought were some of Rochester’s most intriguing storefronts. These images were taken on the city’s east side, from Monroe Ave up to East Ridge Road…
I don’t know why, but I really like the number 13. Some people go out of their way to avoid 13. Not me. In fact, I’m about to embark on a yearlong project for 2013. I’m going to pick 13 random subjects. Take 13 snapshots of each. And we’ll see if we can paint a portrait of Rochester.
Let’s start with the seemingly mundane mailbox. Most of these snapshots were taken near Sea Breeze…
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After the Erie Canal was rerouted south of downtown Rochester, the Rochester
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![13 Rochesterians [PHOTOS BY: Arlene Hodge]](https://www.rochestersubway.com/images/photos/13-homeless-rochesterians.jpg)
. These are portraits of 13 Rochesterians she’s met on the streets. Arleen says she is grateful to call these people her “friends.”![13 Rochester T-shirts [PHOTO: Tiny Fish Printing]](https://www.rochestersubway.com/images/photos/13-rochester-tshirts.jpg)
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