Today, I received a phone call from Robert, the man with the headphones featured in the video, and he told me that he has put himself into a program and has been clean for a few days! He said that it was because of the portrait I drew of him that he decided to turn his life around.Continue reading
Luis is a man at peace, a quiet spirit. Instead of anxiously filling in empty spaces with words, he invites the gaps in conversation. He sits back and quietly takes it all in, more of an observer than a participant in the near-bedlam all around him. He never seems to lose his dignified bearing. Luis is known as “Scrappy” because he’s the street’s mechanic, digging into his oversized bag of tools to tweak, repair, or repurpose the scraps people bring him – pieces of a bike, a broken wheelchair, a shopping cart. Luis is self-perceptive. He perceives the image of himself that could be, and should be, but you can tell that his own ideals are so elusive that it is challenging for him to even think about trying to be that person he knows is deep down inside him somewhere.
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Luis by Jason Leith
found objects, charcoal, etching, composite gold leaf
available for purchase
Steve lives on the outskirts. Instead of mingling with the homeless on Skid Row, he has found a secluded oasis of nature at the edge of a vacant lot at the edge of LA County. Steve has been dealt a difficult hand in life, and despite being adopted, losing his mother at a young age, having a severe physical disability in his leg, and suffering from delusional schizophrenia, he has tried to stay on track the best he can. Over the past couple of years, as I have done things like getting Steve a new knee brace to help him walk again, or transporting his clothes to the Laundromat after weeks of living in the dirt, his response is “I feel human again.” This old rotting chair came from Steve’s place, one of the many discarded items that piled up against the cinderblock wall under the canopy of trees where he spends his time.
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Steve by Jason Leith
found chair, wire, charcoal
available for purchase
James is a natural leader. He is originally from Louisiana and has been living without a home for thirty years. His body language, even as he sits in his wheelchair, definitely shows the dignity of his southern roots. Despite his amputated leg, it appears that he is the boss around Crocker Street. While we were together, people were constantly coming to him with questions and checking in for his advice. As I was drawing him, he said, “You know, you can tell it all in the eyes.” He paused, “So whaddya see in my eyes?” I stopped, looked deeply into his dark eyes and replied, “I see wisdom. I see an age of stories and life experiences, and a determination for a goal ahead of you.” After drawing James’ portrait, we set up his tent together as it began to lightly rain. I haven’t seen James since that day—people say that he just had to get out of this place. But every time I pass, I look for him, trying to spot a bowler hat or a wheelchair.
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James by Jason Leith
found objects, charcoal
SOLD, Private Owner Houston, TX
Angelo is a weathered lyricist. At first he is intimidating with his hulking stature and evident power. But if you stay with him long enough to really see him, you discover a spirit of joy layered down in the crevices of his life. Angelo has a complex family life that he navigates with the insights he gains through his written songs and spoken word poetry. Angelo’s rhythmic words, spun with a capella melodies, weave a circle of hope around him and his audience, right there on the sidewalks of ‘crack alley.’ He has been writing for a long time now, and he is even working towards recording an album. I loved the fact that Angelo has dreams and an obvious gift to give the world, made all the more powerful from his platform on the streets.
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Angelo by Jason Leith
found cupboard door, etching
available for purchase
Lisha is other-worldly. She has been homeless for 22 years, but the spiritual realm is where she dwells. She wears an ‘I Heart Jesus’ lanyard from which dangles a huge gold key that’s her ‘key to the kingdom.’ She converses with God, out loud, on practical matters. When I asked if I could draw her portrait, she immediately said, “God, what do you think about this portrait? Is this the right thing to do? You know I’m just trying to serve you.” After listening to God’s answer, she nodded at him and gladly agreed to the portrait. Her choice of the cement piece was instant; she had had a vision where her face was engraved into cement with a shining light coming through it, posed exactly the way she had seen herself in the vision. Skid Row, for her, is hell, but she is stuck here while her husband is in treatment for a stroke in the VA hospital. What’s her dream for her life? “To be used by God.”
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Lisa by Jason Leith
found cement, rebar, charcoal, etching
available for purchase
Jeff is a nurturer. For years he has been a devoted partner to Melissa, his girlfriend, and together they have migrated from Florida to California, preferring the open streets to the shelters. A series of losses has taken their home, then their van they were living in, and now their health. Jeff’s foot is infected so badly it’s swollen up huge and he can’t walk on it. Yet, his focus is not on himself, but on gently caring for Melissa’s needs. He is solicitous, making sure she has what she needs. He extends his caring to those around him as he shares his simple snack, and he has a nurturing manner that reminded me of my own father. I prayed with Jeff for his foot, and the next time I saw him the swelling had gone way down and he was able to walk.
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Jeff by Jason Leith
found objects, charcoal, etching
SOLD, Private Collection, Corona Del Mar, CA
Saul is a complex soul. We have been getting together regularly for several years, and he’s always this mixture of sorrow and hope. We often begin our time together working through some ugliness or disappointment in his life at the time, but we almost always get to a point where he finds his joy, and we part with smiles and long hugs. Saul is not shy about expressing his doubts about God, which come out most strongly when he’s disconnected from his friends. He draws strength from friends who can remind him that he has a purpose and the whole world is not against him. There were several months last year when Saul was homeless, and no matter where we met up he would be hauling these two gigantic suitcases behind him. But, he persevered through that time, just has he has with countless other setbacks, and he is now employed and making enough to keep a roof over his head.
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Saul by Jason Leith
found objects, charcoal, etching
available for purchase
