Photos under Uptown bridge draw attention to the problem of homelessness in Minneapolis

The big black-and-white faces appeared under a bridge in Uptown Minneapolis last week.

There's Daniel T., an androgynous person wearing a knit hat, diamond stud earrings and a timid smile. Ken T. has a Twins cap on his head and a gap in his teeth. And 52 more, along with this question in large print: "Homeless or Homebody?"

Some passersby stop to contemplate the photos glued to a wall under Hennepin Avenue.

"I have never seen anything like this," said Katie Riddle, who paused while powerwalking the Midtown Greenway. "I think it's very striking. People definitely notice it."

Many, however, barely glanced at the photos while jogging or speeding by on bikes, scooters or Segways.

Ignoring homelessness is exactly what sparked this project by Twin Cities photographer Travis Meier. The intention of this temporary installation — which Meier attached to the wall with a homemade paste of flour and water — is to get people to stop and look, contemplate the question he's posed, then visit his website (Tphoto.org) to discover the answers.

The project grew from a complicated mix of feelings.

Every day last fall, Meier passed by the homeless encampment along Hiawatha Avenue that swelled to more than 300 people.

Originally from Winona, Minn., Meier, 30, felt a growing sense of discomfort about his own privilege. He was also frustrated with Instagram, where he was posting a lot of images but not getting much attention.

He wanted to make art with a social justice bent, rather than getting lost in the sea of swipes, likes and shares. So he followed his conscience and marched into the homeless camp, determined to take people's portraits.

"I set up a photo studio in the middle of the encampment, sat on a stool, and engaged every single person that walked by until they got effing annoyed with me," he said.

More than half the people agreed to have their picture taken. Once he developed the pictures, he came back and showed them to his subjects for approval.

Some people preferred to stay anonymous, while others offered a first name and initial — which viewers can learn by visiting Tphoto.org.

Some of the people he photographed have since passed away from drug overdoses. He wasn't able to stay in touch with his subjects, whose lives were unstable.

"Sometimes they had phones and sometimes they didn't," he said solemnly.

Meier said he "hasn't made a dime" off the project, which he has put nearly 400 hours into. He wants to transform the guilt he experienced into raising awareness about homelessness, and eventually money for homeless institutions.

Going public

The plan wasn't always to post these portraits under the Hennepin/Greenway bridge.

The photographer was initially inspired by a "60 Minutes" report about French street artist JR, known for portraits of subcultures that he posted guerrilla-style around Paris. (He's now in art museums and galleries, and was featured in the Oscar-nominated documentary "Faces Places.")

Meier decided to try the same thing, posting his photos during the wee hours in Minneapolis parks. But within hours, city workers scrapped them.

Then he noticed some fine print on JR's website about the Inside Out Project, started in 2011, which offers photographers a chance to tell "the untold stories and images of people in their communities" through posting their portraits in public spaces. Meier reached out, and the project agreed to contribute photo printing, which cost approximately $800.

After that global outreach, things got local again. Meier reached out to many people including Mary Altman, public arts administrator for the city of Minneapolis, and Soren Jensen, executive director of the Midtown Greenway Coalition, who paid the city's $75 public-art posting permit.

They helped the project find a home.

"When we found [that the project was] about homelessness and really putting a human face on that, we felt it was really in line with what we support," said Jensen.

Despite all the location-related drama, Meier said, "I like big challenges."

Also, he's "mostly too stubborn to stop."

Many homeless people dwell along the Midtown Greenway, but that connection to the greater issue of homelessness was coincidental, he said.

"The reason it's under a bridge is: A.) I can work any day whether or not it's raining and B.) it will make it last that much longer," he said.

"It just happens to be where they stay. That's just the nature of the beast."

612-673-4437 • @AliciaEler