Photos & Stories very bad things homeless man san francisco may 2007 "hi, how are you?" he says excitedly. he thinks he knows me for a moment. name's dan; from billings, montana. left when he was 15. been on the street since then. talks to his parents sometimes on the phone. mostly to his mom. but she just died three months ago. talked to his dad then; and to his sister. she's born again. has two other sisters too; no one knows where they are. he was supposed to be flown back for the funeral; but that didn't happen. tells me how he came to san francisco ten years back: "me and this..." he stops and looks at me. "do you hate gays?" he asks. "no." "k. me and this gay guy; we broke out of an institution; jumped the fence and hopped a train. came to san francisco. we were friends for a long time." "you're not still together?" i ask. "no. i wish we were though." a man in his fifties walks by with a big smile disturbing the thought. he's looking at dan repeating like he's bursting: "the naked guy from the hotel! the naked guy from the hotel!" he doesn't stop walking. "he took pictures of me. naked pictures. i didn't like that." asked how he gets by, says "i do what i have to do." "what were you in the institution for?" i ask. "my parents put me there when i was 9. they lied; said i did things i didn't do." "it was 'cause of my father. he molested me. he did very bad things to me." (5/24/07) kids with dolls young person panhandling beside teddy bear san francisco february 2007 she sits in a way ladies aren't supposed to, beside a large teddy bear which doesn't seem to mind. they're layered in a sort of soot set by time. but there's a familiarity. the people pass in huddled disbelief at what she shows. though it's not so much, it looks like more. their eyes and fingers point. there's shock as they go. she's grasping her knees like she's sitting in a cold shower remembering the night before. like she's crashing down off the heroin she took too long before. like she needs another fix. but first she "just" needs five bucks. for that "habit" she has. she's been panhandling. there's a skin trade everywhere here. and she looks the part. with her pink lipstick and blond wig. with her bare coverings. with her indiscretion. but she has a face that is so familiar. and when she talks it's not as a lady. name's wayland; from san mateo. been on the street since he was sixteen. he's been living in a nearby low income hotel he pays with ssi benefits. what for, the ssi? he points to his head. says he has plenty of friends on the street, but his family is mostly dead; except for a sister. he visits her sometimes. and i know now that i've met him before as a boy. (2/19/07)

June 2007 Newsletter

Greetings all! 

So for fun, I thought we could check out some places where my photos have been showing up recently. 

From Alabama, a large number of my photographs can be seen in segments of the educational documentary "Inside Out" (www.inside-outmovie.com) (press release) described as "an emotionally gripping film that exposes the real story about the devastating and lasting effects of dropping out, told by those who live with the consequences every day: Prison inmates."

In the UK, Brian and Gabriel have made it to the back streets and alleys.  "Fiction" (photostream here) from Bristol has created stencils of both and is tagging them round about.

At the University of British Columbia, there is an article on my photography in the student newsletter "Think Equity."  The newsletter is put out by UBC's Equity Ambassador Program which is dedicated to promoting human rights and inclusivity, and to building social change skills and knowledge.  You can view the article (click here) and images on their website (though the PDF doesn't show the images too well).

In Houston, Worship and Media Minister Scott Allen put together this video which included a large number of my photos.  He just posted in on his blog (click here; see 6/13/07 posting) and on YouTube (click here).

That's probably enough for now :)

Visit my online show at Servicio Ejecutivo (www.servicio-ejecutivo.com | Brooklyn) and check out the interview (right after the artist statement). 

The Studio 333 (333A Caledonia Street | Sausalito) group show is just around the corner!  The opening reception is Saturday, June 23 from 6pm to 9pm.  The show will be running through August 6. 

And you can stop by Rayko (428 Third Street | San Francisco) any time to see some of my smaller prints in their "photographers marketplace" flat files. 

Most sales come from shows or scheduled viewings, but remember when you buy online, at least 30% of the sale is donated to get basic supplies to young people on the street.  And on selected prints, a full 100% is donated.

Finally, don't forget to schedule a portrait session today while still available in the Bay Area.  Call the studio line at (415) 992-6366, my cell at (415) 846-1018, or email me at tom@tomstonegallery.com.

Tom Stone was born on a train outside of Mexico City traveling to Puerto Angel, Oaxaca. His parents separated soon after his birth and he grew up with his mother in various communal and nomadic settings in Hawaii and California.

A graduate of Harvard University with a degree in computer science, he worked in Silicon Valley for a number of years in investment banking and in the technology industry.

He is a documentary photographer known for his portraits of people living along the edges of society. His photography shares perspective with the work of Dorothea Lange, Richard Avedon, Diane Arbus and Sebastião Salgado.

To my thinking, the original human trauma is our separation. We are too close not to need each other; and too far to trust each other. We rely on dubious senses and clever devices to interact; but we are alone in our thoughts. Lonely, insecure and uncertain; we pair, we group, we associate. We try to belong and we seek to exclude. We form bonds by geography, religion, economy and otherwise. But it is all precarious. We come together and we drive apart.

And we climb our ladder. We step away from those who don’t belong and help those who do. We are connected rung by rung – though less and less – as we push and pull. But some do not climb; and below, the earth is littered with them. They fit too poorly. They stand apart. They stand without.

And what of them; these ones who don’t belong or who are excluded; who don’t fit or don’t try? Is there nothing they value? Is there nothing of them we value? I count it as a measure of our ignorance, the depth of poverty in the world. It’s a glaring marker to how far we have not come. Yet it has also driven our advance; on less fortunate backs and against less fortunate fate.

But is there really no connection there? Does such fate – whether choice or circumstance – speak nothing of us? Tell me we do more than advance in place; with so many left behind. Or promise me we can do better. Say we can reflect ourselves; us and them... That we can see the ways we overlap and distinguish the ways we grow apart. And pledge that we can learn; to fit all of our misshapes; to reward value beyond charity and beyond the marketplace; to be better to each other; to be better ourselves. And promise me it could be a better world. Or tell me we are at our best.