Mirrors in the Street

Perception is really an amazing phenomenon. Specifically, self-perception, perception of one's own physical appearance. What does it reveal when one perceives of his or her own body? Often, forms of body dismorphia come into play. The mind exhibits an inability to accurately conceptualize of it's own physical form and thus perceives imperfections and inaccuracies. A size four woman sees herself as a size 10. 

But what do you see when you don't have a mirror? What is remembered? Exaggerated? Removed? Distorted? And how does self-esteem come into play? As I go through my days in New York, I am struck by the homeless people who speckle the sidewalks, curious about their lives and, more so, their perceptions of themselves. Thus began a project.

Before class on Wednesday, I stopped at a shop, picked up a sketch pad and a illustration pen, and set off searching. I began to encounter people on the streets who were asking for money and stopped to talk to them. Giving them a dollar, or in one case a uniball pen, I asked if they could help me with a project. I asked them if they would mind drawing a self-portrait of themselves from memory. So far, all have obliged. As they drew, they told me their stories. Openly. Without reservation. They seemed hungry to talk, to have someone listen sympathetically and without judgement. I listened. They sketched. 

The drawings are fascinating revelations of their self-perceptions. It doesn't matter the amount of skill present or lacking, but the drawings themselves are encoded with each person's story. I spoke with one man who, though employed as a newspaper seller and living in the Bronx, was severely impoverished. His was the only drawing with a smile, the only one to take up most of the page. The others, from homeless men, are small, discrete, and unobtrusive. The figures don't smile, as though apologizing for the little room they take up on the page. 

I cannot wait to get back up to the city to continue this project, to collect more stories and hear about more lives. 

A Thought: Try to draw a self portrait from memory. It doesn't matter your skill level. Just try to see if you can remember your appearance well enough to recreate it. It's a very interesting exercise.

A Find: A. I. Friedman's. Located on 17th, I think between fifth and sixth...maybe. It's an amazing store offering all kinds of notebooks, sketchpads, drawing pens and pencils, portfolios, frames, drawing tables, filing cabinets, etc... Definitely my favorite writing implement store.