Lieke Karssemeijer

Stories from the Street

"The worst thing about being homeless is that people walk past you and don't even look at you. You just don't feel human anymore." This statement from Rory is what gave me the final push to start my project. Rory was the first homeless person I spoke to in my research, and his story resonated with me. People living on the streets all have a story. It's just as worthy of hearing as anyone else's, but why don't we do it?

In Ritzo ten Cate's work "Just a Cup of Coffee," he describes how he struck up a conversation with street newspaper vendor Jonny de Graaf: "I didn't want his newspaper, but I asked him how I could help him. He replied, 'I don't need help, but there's a woman on Oosterstraat who occasionally invites me in for just a cup of coffee. And I really appreciate that.'" This statement captures the core of my project. Making the person behind the outward "homeless" presentation feel dignified by seeing them as loved ones and simply engaging in conversation with them.

Various studies have shown that the most painful aspects of being homeless are the lack of recognition and human attention, and the constant change. Distance gets created by assumptions that are passed down from generation to generation and thus perpetuated. People themselves are often confronted with these assumptions, even though the vast majority of them are untrue.

"The face speaks. It speaks, and in that, it makes all speech possible and gives it a beginning," Emmanuel Levinas stated in his essay "Totalité et Infini: Essai sur l'extériorité." He argues that responsibility arises by looking at someone. The other person's face demands recognition and humanity. According to Levinas, the moment of contact begins with the other person's facial expression and posture. A friendly greeting can be enough to make the other person feel worthy of existing.

For this project, I went to Zwolle to engage in conversations with homeless people. I heard many stories, accompanied by very enthusiastic looks from the people themselves; they appreciated the listening ear.

After this, I started experimenting with clay and writing poems - a poem for each person. Ultimately, I created a route through the city. It runs from ArtEZ, past the Grote Kerk (Great Church) and parks, to the train station (or vice versa). Each point along the route is significant for a homeless person and tells their story through images.

I invite you to walk the route and open yourself up to the stories of these people. Because what would happen if we said a friendly hello to them instead of silently passing by? Who is really behind that old man sitting at your supermarket?