‘Evicted’ Series

by Elizabeth Anne Herrmann

“My artistic agenda considers alternative photography’s democratic potential—I seek society’s discarded bits, the castoff trash of restless purchasing power. Artists regularly claim technologies that are no longer commercially viable, but I also focus attention to discarded cultural elements and intentionally disregarded individuals. These themed photographic series convey narratives of the vernacular of Baltimore’s street life, and especially the streets most people actively avoid and pretend do not exist. These images were shot with Holgas, Dianas, and DIY plastic toy cameras. Evicted is an ongoing photo essay paralleling abandoned homes and homelessness in Baltimore translated through the lenses of unpretentious, cheap plastic cameras.“

Launching from the Design MFA program at the Maryland Institute College of Art in Baltimore, Maryland, I picked up my first plastic lens camera from my mentor, Jonathan Trundle. As a graphic designer, I had been working exclusively with digital photography until I learned of the satisfying applications of distorted lenses, expired films, and cross processing. I became enamored with film photography and proceeded to collect over 83 analog cameras at a time when people were practically giving them away. Given my cross disciplinary background as a graphic designer and writer, I wanted to tell a candid story of my home city, Baltimore. My most significant influences are Vivian Maier crossed with Howard Zinn. I seek to document A People’s History of Baltimore through an unfiltered lens.