Hana L. Anderson
Green Street 1
color photograph
24 x 24 in.
I am an artist from Chicago, which means I am a person who is exposed to all the richness and poorness of this great city. My daily commute means driving or riding the Red-line El from 95th street to downtown. The landscape of this morning and afternoon journey changes with every stop: abandoned properties and lots to the skyline skyscrapers.
As an artist, I am very interested in the interconnections of urban abandonment mixed with the spirit of infinite possibilities can bring forth change. It’s not a new concept, but it was one that requires constant consideration as I believe that every object and space has energy if we go beyond the material.
“Grassroots” is a perfect topic for me to explore Green Street, which is street on the south side of Chicago. There is an abandoned property that is near an abandoned park. There is a school that is in the background that may or not be a high performing school, in fact it could also be abandoned. Every time I drive-by or walk-by, it feels desolate though there are homes near-by.
Green Street 1, 2, and 3 are photographs for us to continue to re-think, re-imagine and illuminate conversation about what is happening on this street, thus the world. It is a real and surreal of not only asking What Happened on Green Street?