The Food Desert: at Honeybee Market with Rachel

"With places like Honeybee [...] healthy food is accessible"

The Food Desert: at Family Fair Food Center with A Nice Lady*

"I don't have any problem finding healthy food in Detroit."

The Food Desert: at Harbortown Market with Nadja

"I religiously go to [Eastern Market] every Saturday."

The Food Desert: at Lafayette Foods with Charrissma

"I've never had a problem finding healthy food."

The Food Desert: at Atlas Market with Nichole

"Eating healthy has to be a daily habit; like brushing your teeth."

Iyende

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- View Large -

There are two weather conditions that make for great street portrait light: 1) overcast days when the sun's harsh light is scattered by clouds and 2) Sunset/sunrise when the sun's light is warm and directional but not too harsh as it is partially diffused by the oblique path it travels through the earth's atmosphere.

"Where is this going?..." [1 of 2 in the Redbull House of Art series]

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I started this project way back when because I wanted to share with the rest of the world what I loved about my hometown and its people. That said, I never intended it to be a platform for blind boosterism. If I encounter something that displeases me in my everyday life as a Detroiter – in my everyday life as an sentient being – that displeasure will more likely than not seep into a TPOD post.

That said, the past couple of posts have been admittedly heavy.  In "Why Midtown is Better than Royal Oak" an incident at a suburban Starbucks led to a discussion of how social equity is affected for better or worse by the demographics of a place.

In "Dezey and the World of Tomorrow" we discussed how disproportionate religiosity in the black community leads to disproportionately high homophobia in the black community.

Fun times.

Mystery Solved

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In the Mysteries and Enigmas post, I introduced you to a young woman I happened across in John K King Used and Rare Books. The place is an amazing repository for books - and for repressed childhood emotional trauma (Confused? Read the original post).

A Cup of Stoicism

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I'm starting a People of Detroit mini-series dedicated to Detroiters in coffeeshops. I've read enough artist statements in museums and spoken with enough people who attended art school to know I should explain the project  like this:

"Coffeeshop Cohorts examines coffeeshops, the alluvial fluid served therein, and the caffeinated pilgrams arrayed to consume it  - together yet alone in the frigidity of the modern American metropolis."

:|

Scientific Sara(h)

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[Before we get started, I have a bit of breaking news. I've created a petition that asks General Motors to exhibit The People of Detroit in the GM Renaissance Building in downtown Detroit during the 2012 North American International Auto Show. I want to collect 10,000 signatures before December 15th. The idea is to convince GM that this exhibition - and the international attention it would garner - is a good idea for Detroit and for GM itself. If you agree[which you do], go here.]

I'm a resident with the Creative Ventures business accelerator program. Fellow Ventures resident business Detroit Lives!  is in the process of filming promotional videos for the accelerator program. I went out with crew the other day so they could record me doing my TPOD thing.

Mysteries and Enigmas

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I was around 12-years-old when my father took time off from his day job as a traveling absentee father, and arranged to finally meet the most handsome and best-smelling of his nine abandoned children.

The meeting place was my childhood home on a bright, sunny, summer afternoon. I remember feeling a roiling storm of contradictory emotions: hurt and anticipation, anger and curiosity. More than anything else, I looked forward to unloading 12 years of playing-catch-with-a-brickwall animus on its deserving progenitor.

Chinelo

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I have an odd hobby.  I'm fascinated by the relationship between geography and phenotype. I'm amazed that you can reliably predict someone's national ancestry just by looking at them.

In pursuit of my hobby, I've aggregated thousands of hours of National Geographic,  6 o'clock news, PBS, and Discovery channel footage into a tidy mental database of phenotypes and their corresponding national origins. This database undergirds my odd hobby and it also compels me to ask people who look like they are from distant lands to explain what distant land they are from exactly.

Teacher

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I wasn't really thinking about The People of Detroit when I came across this young woman. The sun was still high in the sky, unfettered by clouds, and casting strong shadows that are generally unflattering for portraits.

That said, I thought this young woman had stunning features, so I figured I'd make of the available light what I could.

Painter | Writer

Canon EOS 7D | Canon 35mm f/1.4 | Available Light

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What's happening good people. I went to the People's Art Festival today. A lot of cool art and most importantly a lot of cool, artistic people.

One such person is Pryncess of Pullup Studios. She had some of her art on display at the festival. I also noticed something else she had on display,

Brandi Loves Detroit

Canon EOS 7D | Canon 35mm f/1.4 | Available Light

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Brandi Keeler, a graphic artist and graduate of the acclaimed Center for Creative Studies, submitted the winning video in the first annual I Love Detroit contest.

The contest was sponsored by Garden Court Condominiums and Miss Keeler's award for the winning submission was a rent-free year in a Garden Court condo.

You can follow Brandi's year in the Garden Court and check out her interview with our local Fox news affiliate  here.

Psychologist | Writer

Canon EOS 7D | Canon 35mm f/1.4 | Available Light
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This is Crystal Y. Coleman. She is a clinical psychologist and writer living here in our wonderful city. I met her on my way back from editing photos at my aforementioned favorite bar, Centaur.

When I saw her, she was passing through the construction scaffolding you seen in the background. I thought it would make for a nice background, so I asked if she would like to be included in TPOD.

Though she was a lil inhibited at first she was nice enough to ultimately let me photograph her.

By the way, in addition to helping people not be crazy (wonder if she can help me...), Crystal is also an aspiring writer. Check her out: www.sayitwritepublishing.com/

[View the weekdaily blog and meet more of: The People of Detroit ]

Ms. I Am Young Detroit

Canon 7D | Canon 35mm f/1.4L | Available Light
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This is Margarita Barry. In addition to being a really great web-designer, she is also the woman behind I Am Young Detroit  - a weekly blog that highlights people younger than 40 who are having a positive impact on the city.

Erika

Canon 7D | Canon 35mm f/1.4L | Available Light
 Canon EOS 7D | Canon 35mm f/1.4 | Available Light

This is Erika with a "k." I saw her on my way out of Centaur and she was nice enough to let me snap a few frames. She hesitate at first saying that she wasn't photogenic and I told her to pipedown and let me be the judge of that.

Anniversary Girl

Canon 7D | Canon 35mm f/1.4L | Available Light
Canon EOS 7D | Canon 35mm f/1.4 | Available Light

Growing up poor teaches you a lot. More than anything else, it conditions you to accept the immutable omnipresence of scarcity.

 I've noticed that manner of thinking has cast a long shadow on my psyche. It runs so deep, that I even get buyer's remorse when I spend money in Grand Theft Auto IV.

Lone Tigers Fan

Canon 7D | Canon 35mm f/1.4L | Available Light
Canon EOS 7D | Canon 35mm f/1.4 | Available Light

I sometimes complain about how difficult it can be to find people to photograph in Detroit. The population of the city peaked in 1950 at 1.8 million people. Currently, the city has fewer than 900,000 residents.

Since the city is more or less at half of its capacity, the streets aren't exactly overflowing with potential candidates for the project.