Welcome

I have found that people rarely look upward past eye level. They are most often surprised when their attention is directed above to something they have passed by without seeing, perhaps for years. One friend of mine had lived for a long time in a Central Towers apartment, across the street from the old Turk Street YMCA (now the Oasis Apartments). When he first saw one of my photographs of the Oasis, he asked me where the building was located. Learning that it was the same building he had seen from his window all those years shocked him, for he had never noticed what was right before his eyes. He has since told me that now, when out and about, he often looks upward and has discovered many beautiful and pleasing aspects of his city that he had never before appreciated, which delights me no end. Cast your gaze aloft every now and then, just to see what is there — you might be surprised.

Photo by Theo Rigby

For Serge

Just about the time I began photographing the architecture of San Francisco’s inner city, Serge Echeverria came into my life, offering not only his friendship, but also both encouragement, and critical assessment of my work. To him, The Hotel Project is dedicated.

(See also Temple of the Heart’s Imagination in Part Four: Encounters & Stories.)

Life is But a Dream

Sadly, this dream has come to an end, but it was a nice dream while it lasted.