HELP (2012 in Silicon Valley)
HELP (2012 in Silicon Valley) began after I moved to San Jose and was struck by the scale of visible homelessness alongside the cityโs highly maintained public spaces and abundance of roses. I was especially affected by the isolation of people living physically within the city while remaining largely outside many of its social systems.
For the project, I was photographed holding a QR code mounted to cardboard in locations throughout San Jose where homelessness was particularly visible, as well as in the cityโs municipal rose garden. No unhoused people were photographed. When scanned, the QR code revealed a single word: โHELP.โ
The work uses that delayed act of recognition to consider visibility, isolation, displacement, and the experience of being present in public space while continually passed by or ignored. The contrast between the cardboard sign, the cultivated roses, and the surrounding city reflects the surreal contradictions I encountered in Silicon Valley. 2012
