A disheveled man

Written By Christopher Pearce
A homeless man in a dark jacket kneeling on a brick street, holding a cigarette, a cup and messy food, looking directly into the camera with smoke rising around his face.

A disheveled man. 2012.

In a side street in Amsterdam, a man living rough pauses between scavenged bites and turns the moment into a kind of performance. He drops to the bricks, food and cigarette still in hand, and meets the lens with a stare that feels equal parts defiance and worn out humour. I am interested in how quickly roles shift here, from someone being watched to someone directing the scene, and how dignity can surface even inside exhaustion and hunger.

50 mm, f/14, 1/640 sec, ISO 200.

Christopher Pearce
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