Pieter Hugo: Where Wildflowers Grow
In his book entitled “Californian Wildflowers”, South African photographer Pieter Hugo turns his attention toward the unhoused communities of San Francisco’s Tenderloin and Los Angeles’s Skid Row.
What began as a residency to organize his archive shifted after Pieter Hugo’s partner wandered into the Tenderloin and told him, “You need to come photograph this.” The resulting portraits were made in collaboration with many of the subjects and shaped by the photographer’s own proximity to instability.
“I come from a very fortunate, entitled background, but there was a period of my life where I was very close to falling between the cracks because of substance abuse and mental health issues,” he says. Shot in harsh daylight, the images recall Baroque composition while staying firmly rooted in the present. Proceeds support the Homeless Youth Alliance.
The book “Californian Wildflowers” is published by TBW Books and available at the price of 50$.
