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Phil Douglis | all galleries >> Galleries >> Gallery Three: Expressing human values > Delusion, Portland, Oregon, 2009
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21-JUN-2009

Delusion, Portland, Oregon, 2009

A trembling hand pressed to a head, barely glimpsed through the window of a bus stop shelter covered with graffiti. The fringes of downtown Portland are laden with homeless men such as this one. It was a sad sight, made more so by the contrasting optimistic warm colors of a summer Sunday morning. Delusion is the human value that most comes to mind here.

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Phil Douglis20-May-2018 21:34
You kind words on this image, Merri, are very much appreciated. Thank for understaning why I made this image as I did. Human values such as delusion, disorder, and despair are often best expressed when they are approached in an abstract rather than a descriptive manner. I use light and shadow, as well as the graffiti covered window of the bus shelter itself, to conceal this man's identity and instead allow the viewer to focus on the meaning of the hand gesture itself.
Merri 19-May-2018 22:20
Tens of thousands of homeless people, a significant portion of them mentally ill, addicted, or both live in and around Los Angeles. Scenes of this nature are so common-place and many photographers make images of them. Some of these images are exploitive and lack compassion. Not so here. I think even a casual observation of this photograph would trigger compassion in the viewer. You've made this man's condition relatable with your careful use of light and his immediate environment. I think by seeing it, we can all relate to how uncomfortable having a disordered mind can be.
Phil Douglis05-Jul-2009 20:28
Thanks, Mo -- it was a poignant scene, and I tried to do justice to it with this image.
monique jansen05-Jul-2009 18:16
Poignant and powerful
Phil Douglis04-Jul-2009 23:57
I anxiously await seeing your own version of this image, Tim. The pattern is indeed critical here, because it does represent complexity, fragmentation, and a primitive kind of folk art, all of which can add context to the struggle of a troubled mind.
Tim May04-Jul-2009 19:38
I will - eventually - post an image very similar to this - and for me this pattern on the glass is extremely important in the expression of the scene - because it represents the chaos that I project the man's mind is trying to struggle through.
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