Understanding Poverty | Opens September 12th at Diverse Works

by Omar Afra
Ben Tecumseh DeSoto says he likes to bring to light the “broke and the broken.” Well, the number of those that fit this category has grown disproportionately in recent years in Houston and the rest of the country. Gifted photojournalist DeSoto revisits this exhibit that he initially did in 1992 at Diverse Works. He has been studying the phenomenon of homelessness in Houston for some 20 years and his photography shows a marked insight. He began in 1988 by building a relationship with two homeless Houstonians, Ben White and Judy Pruitt. DeSoto’s experiences with the two allowed him to document their incredible stories of hope and sorrow while “exposing the self-perpetuating cycle of poverty, trauma and hopelessness that afflicts thousands of citizens living in the shadows in America’s cities.” This dynamic has no doubt changed here in Houston with the continued lack of attention to homelessness here, the sudden influx of thousands of Katrina refugees, and municipal policy of criminalizing the homeless.
“The streets of Houston have been a regular “beat” I worked with my camera,” says DeSoto, “and I want others to see what I’ve seen, and understand what I’ve come to understand, the role of the trauma in magnifying the drama of poverty.” DeSoto’s populist “punk” aesthetic comes through in his work to exemplify such drama. With his work will be hand written interviews with Ben and Judy, ‘work-in-progress’ film shorts, and a light installation made from negatives with artist Sarah Watley Ayers. The Project has become a joint effort and collaborators include DiverseWorks, the Houston Endowment, Que Imaging, and others including the photography subjects.
This will the first show in the new season for Diverse Works and precedes by just a week a night of musical performances by Jana Hunter, Lesser Gonzalez Alvarez, and Wicked Poseur on September 17th.

September 12 - November 1, 2008
Opening Reception: Friday, September 12, 2008
6-8pm
Curated by Clint Willour
www.diverseworks.org
1117 East Freeway