Farmington native and photographer Phil Farnsworth, has profiled homeless residents in Connecticut on and off, for nearly 40 years.
Farnsworth released a book of photography, Under the Bridge, in 1988. But with the state’s current rise in homelessness, Farnsworth decided to revisit the subject through his work. His latest exhibit was recently on display at the State Capitol.
When asked why he decided to revisit homelessness in his work, Farnsworth said, “I just can't take it anymore.”
“I'm driving around, and I'm seeing this stuff everywhere I go around the state,” Farnsworth said. “I'm not just picking on Hartford. It's going on everywhere. Every mall I go to, every stop sign, there appears to be somebody hustling for money, for something, and it's getting worse and worse and worse.”
Farnsworth said he eases into conversation with his subjects before asking permission to photograph them.
Much of Farnsworth’s recent work surrounds unhoused residents whose drug or alcohol addictions led to their homelessness.
“In the past you wouldn't see it. It was hidden under the bridges, and now it's out in the open and everyone can see it, and no one's doing anything about it. At least they're trying to,” Farnsworth said.
Farnsworth’s latest exhibit features black and white images of unhoused residents in the Greater Hartford area.
Farmington native, Kenneth Nelson, is among those who are featured in the exhibit. Nelson was homeless for seven years after his mother died and he wasn’t able to pay her reverse mortgage.
Nelson slept under highway overpasses and on benches until recently, when he began to qualify for social security payments. A local church also helped him secure an apartment.
“He (Farnsworth) took a couple pictures. He showed me them so I know I like them,” Nelson said of the photography experience. “It’s just to make the awareness about, it could be any town.”
State Sen. Saud Anwar said seeing unhoused people in the intimate photos forces viewers to want to help.
“We have an opportunity to look at their eyes, look at their faces, humanize them, see our family, see our friends, see people we care about in them,” Anwar said.
The exhibit is at the State Capitol, with plans for a permanent version to be added to the building. Farnsworth said the exhibit will also be featured at various locations across the state.
