Social Reportage: The Sign Project

**OFFSITE EXHIBITION** Session IV of the Social Reportage class at Flower City Arts Center found students immersed in the lives of those who call the streets home and those living in poverty that we might otherwise overlook. The Sign Project came about when a homeless man, Jon who lives in a tent in Rochester, New York, shared a link from Rethink Homelessness with photojournalist, Arleen Thaler asking if she could do something like that here. Rethink Homelessness, a coalition located in Florida, asked their homeless friends to write down a fact about themselves that other people wouldn't know just by walking past them. The Sign Project is a result of a partnership that grew between Arleen’s students and the men and women who shared a little piece of themselves with us. Using cardboard they dispelled some of the myths surrounding homelessness. Their answers may offer a glimpse you might otherwise be unaware of.

Participating photographers include: Norman Strothers, Kelly Mullaney, Tim Chaddock, Ed Stone, Kristy Bianchi, Julie Oldfield, and Arleen Thaler.

Donations/gifts will be accepted to support the ongoing work St. Joseph’s provides to the homeless community through their seasonal overnight shelter, soup kitchen and meeting the basic daily needs.

Photo by Kristy Bianchi, © 2017