Good evening and welcome to Outstanding in the Field. A weekly diary devoted to people who are doing the right thing. A reminder of the American spirit we so rarely see in American government.
I almost passed on this because it seems like a book advertisement but since all of the book’s proceeds go to the homeless, tonight’s story may be worth the effort. A man who has a hobby that he uses to raise awareness in America and the results is a View of the Homeless from a CEO’s office;
"Finding Grace" (Palace Press) is not the first published work documenting the struggles of the homeless, but it is the first photographed by the CEO of a Fortune 500 company. An amateur photographer since he was 10 years old, Blodgett’s work is a compilation of 50 photo shoots—the results of which are powerful black-and-white portraits of homeless men, women and children across the country, from a veteran living on the gritty streets of Newark, N.J., to resilient children surviving in the affluent beachside community of Santa Monica, Calif. The book says as much about the humanity of the homeless as the efforts of one man willing to spend the time, money and emotion required to complete it.
Lynn Blodgett is a man who doesn’t have to worry where his next meal is coming from. With an annual salary of $554,998, stock options of around $6 million and running a corporation worth $6 billion, he would seem like a man who could not find the time for finding grace.
Not only did he find time for people less fortunate that himself, browsing some of his photos portrays a photographer who, while having so little in common with his models, both relates to and captures the spirit of a people that many Americans consider to be invisible.
Their portraits compel the reader to ask questions: How did they get here? How do they survive? What were they feeling when the photos were shot? Through their sometimes soiled faces, expressionless stares, eclectic outfits or telling bodily injuries, each of the displaced people photographed in Lynn Blodgett’s "Finding Grace, the Face of America’s Homeless," offers a glimpse of the humanity in the people so often overlooked by mainstream America.
Lynn Blodgett’s pursuit began back in 2003 during a photography workshop. On a one day assignment to shoot subjects around Santa Fe, N.M he chose a trailer park and created a portrait of a homeless man and his son. From that assignment this CEO who admits not always being aware of the homeless situation in America then became sensitive to a mostly overlooked part of the American population.
"The thing about the homeless that was so captivating was their humanity."
Since then, he has been working to capture the stories of the homeless across America in Black & White.
In Forbes Lynn Bloget is portrayed as An Avedon For the Poor but his portraits are in stark contrast with the soft light of Richard Avadon’s fashion and beauty fame.
A more appropriate association would be with Avadon’s In The American West. Just like that series, Bloget places his weathered worn models in front of the contrasting pure white of a seamless background.
In Finding Grace the fact that the dark weathered skin of these outdoor people is aged by the sidewalks of America adds an identity that is quite emotional. The photos create an identity where any person can look down at their coffee table and see themselves. A portrait of struggle can be seen where the words "But for the Grace of God, there goes I" comes to mind as we look into the faces of our sisters and brothers.
"I hope we can see beyond the myths that all homeless people are lazy, addicted, or crazy," Blodgett says. "These are real people. They have stories to tell. If we look into their eyes, we can discover talented musicians, bricklayers, businesswomen, and poets. And we can learn from them."
Blodgett still goes from city to city, setting up shop on sidewalks and at homeless shelters. He offers a ten dollar bill to anyone who is willing to pose as he listens to their story while taking their picture.
That ten dollars may not sound like much but that Forbes article gives an assessment of how much money Lynn Blodgett's good work has given to the homeless community.
In Boston, Dallas, Los Angeles and other cities, Blodgett has joined with local or national charities to use his images to raise $6 million so far for welfare programs. In L.A., for example, he helped the United Way raise $1 million with a walkathon in which 5,000 participants walked past displays of Blodgett's pictures. In New York City last year Sotheby's auctioned off six prints for $20,000. "Those were the first prints I ever sold," says Blodgett with still audible amazement. The money went to A.C.E., a Manhattan charity that finds work and eventually housing for people who have neither. "We hope," he says, "to do 20 or 30 more events and to raise $20 million to $30 million more."
But the real saving grace of Finding Grace: A Portrait of the Homeless is the fact that it offers Americans a chance to look into eyes that so many Americans avoid. Eyes that displace so many stereotypes as they show passion, dignity, resiliency, and even hope.