I visited the Leslie Lohman Museum this past weekend. One of their exhibitions is the photography of Christian Walker. Like so many other artists, his work has interesting ties to care work.
Walker’s first portraits were inspired by the work of Diane Arbus and featured residents at the group home where he worked. He documented the lives of the overlooked and sought to capture their inherent dignity.
Walker later became a resident of a supportive housing program, after several years of being unhoused. He continued his photography until his death. When he died, the staff at the residence did not contact his friends or family. It appears that all of his belongings, including his photographs, were discarded.
“People assume that, if they use vision to do something, it is not possible to do it in other ways.”