The Scene
The Scene is an ongoing experimental digital photography series documenting the Springfield, MO, D.I.Y. music scene.
Eden Village
In the Spring of 2019 I worked with Eden Village, a non-profit organization that provides tiny houses to the disabled homeless in Springfield. For four months I visited the residents weekly. The more I got to know the individuals the more I realized that we were all alike. This is a hard concept for some people to grasp because often homeless people are socially put in a separate box than those who are not. People dehumanize these individuals and create unjust assumptions about them. Everyone’s narrative is uniquely their own, yet at the same time we are all the same. We are all humans navigating our life’s path. The terrain may be more treacherous for others, but we all experience our own set of obstacles along the way.
An Ode to the Idle Town
35mm color film
Introduction
I peered out my rearview mirror and watched dust clouds as they settled onto the gravel road. In late May I moved back to my hometown after completing my first year of college at Missouri State University. After spending some time living in a different area, I came back to Bowling Green with fresh eyes. Before leaving for college, I never truly appreciated the charm of living in a small town. In high school, all I ever wanted to do was get out and move elsewhere. However, as I cruised the same streets as I did during those teen years, I started to not only notice, but I began to appreciate the quirks of the rural town life. From the Amish buggy shed outside of the local Walmart to the overgrown barbed wire fences, Bowling Green has a certain rustic charm that is difficult to articulate with just words. Over the summer, I decided to capture just a few of Bowling Green’s idiosyncrasies. Though I do not plan on staying here, I am forever thankful for the experiences I had in this town. This photo series is dedicated to the town that helped shape me into the person I am today. This photo series is my ode to you, Bowling Green.
