documentary photography
Muralist Michael Brown created this pixelated wall in the mid-1990s with remnant paint from other projects. He encouraged volunteers to create their own color blends to add to the myriad of dizzying squares. Unlike most of his other works, Brown went abstract for this vertiginous piece. Inspired by folk art, "Quilt" is draped along the wall of Walt's Grill and can be seen from Franklin Street.
(photograph taken off of Franklin Street on S. Merritt Mill Road in Chapel Hill)
Packs in tow, Lexi and Leroy walk to the shelter on Rosemary Street for breakfast. "We're celebrating our anniversary," Leroy, 26, jokes. They wear their groovy urban style with confidence, revealed as they pose for pictures -- mouths agape, tongues out, arms gnarled around each other. I ask the couple if they envision life outside Chapel Hill, and Leroy says with open arms and head cocked: "Whatever the world brings me."
Lexi, 19, is a bit more risk averse: "I can't imagine being anywhere else. It would be weird living anywhere else but here."
(photograph taken on Rosemary Street and Pritchard Avenue)
Chocolate Suede, the Carrboro-based band with a velvety rich sound, draws a shoulder-swaying crowd at the 35th Annual Festival for the Eno in Durham. The group has played around town at Vimala's Curryblossom Cafe in Chapel Hill, Haw River Ballroom in Saxapahaw, and Shakori Hills Grassroots Festival in Pittsboro. Worth checking them out.
(photographed at 35th Annual Festival for the Eno in Durham on July 5)
(photographs taken in Carrboro on Independence Day)
At 17, Molly appears quite well-versed on the ukulele, the four-stringed instrument with a jaunty sound. Smaller than a guitar, the instrument is commonly associated with Hawaiian music. The name "ukulele" means "jumping fleas" (uku flea + lele jump) in Hawaiian likely because when strummed, the fingers mimic the movement of the jumping insects.
"It's like more of a high-pitch guitar. And it's weird like that. I sort of like that it's weird," Molly says.
Her song "I Want Caffeine" seems to resonate with the crowd clustered on the lawn listening to live music at Weaver Street Market in Carrboro. Like good coffee, her personality seems to strike the delicate balance between bold and sweet notes. This particular song, she wrote herself.
"They sort of just slap me in the face," she says. "I mean they HAVE to slap me in the face."
And yes this musician is a coffee drinker of the ice mocha variety ... "but sometimes I get something weird like a latte."
(photographed on Weaver Street between Main & Greensboro streets)
Sunbathing on the the front lawn of artist Mike Roig's home is perhaps one of Carrboro's most recognized modern landmarks. The 9-foot high gleaming metal sculpture with an oversized head guards the corner of Poplar and Main streets. The sculpture, which Roig calls "Looking Up" (2009), was originally intended to be a contemporary interpretation of the monolithic statues of Easter Island (Polynesia) dating back to the 1500s and characterized by large heads. However locals began to dub it "Obamahead," for its resemblance to the current president. This appealed to Roig who opted not to discourage interpretation.
(photograph taken on the corner of Poplar & Main streets in Carrboro)
Patterson oozes a 70s aura and appears mature beyond her years. I caught up with her while she was leafing through "The Republic of Plato" by Allan Bloom. The 17-year-old is originally from New York City (Washington Heights). She moved to Chapel Hill with her family about five years ago and attends Carolina Friends School, a private Quaker school which fosters active exploration and quiet reflection as part of its mission.
What's her goal? "To be happy."
Is she happy now? "I don't know. I haven't thought about it."
(photographed on the corner of Greensboro & Weaver streets in Carrboro)
Tricia, Barb & Jennie
The threesome meets Sundays at Weaver Street Market in Carrboro for late morning rounds of the word game Upwords. A bounty of people and live music as a backdrop, they remain focused on the blue board.
Jennie (wearing blue): "It's like Scrabble."
Tricia (wearing black): "No it's not like Scrabble."
Barb (wearing white): "Emotionally it's not like Scrabble. It's more creative. With a flick of a tile you can change a word."
Tricia: "I've learned to like to score... I don't like to finish too far behind them."
The point of the boardgame is to build words using letter tiles that can be stacked on top of other letters on the board to create new words. The taller the stack, the more points earned. The women (two live in Chatham County, one in Chapel Hill) say they look forward to to the game every week. "This is about our fourth time here," Barb says.
Tricia disagrees: "No, more like our fifth time." She pauses and adds: "I drive them nuts."
(photograph taken on the lawn of Weaver Street Market off of Weaver & Greensboro)
(photograph taken on Lloyd & Main outside Leo Gaev Metalworks in Carrboro)
Soaring dinosaurs are what local muralist Michael Brown originally envisioned for this Chapel Hill wall. But after the town's design review board turned it down, he opted for its kindred sea turtles, believed to have roamed the earth more than 200 million years ago. Brown painted the staggering 30 x 70-foot "Sea Turtle" mural in 1993. He restored the mural in 2011 as part of the Painted Walls Project, an initiative to recondition murals that shape Chapel Hill's character. The piece is on view along the side of the parking deck at the intersection of Rosemary & Columbia streets.
(photograph taken on the corner of Rosemary & Columbia)
Stephanie & Star Stephanie: "She was the baby and nobody did anything for her birthday so I took her to get a tattoo when I got back from the service."
Star: "We wanted a fairy. We got matching tattoos."
Stephanie: "You know, like an angel on one side and a devil on another."
Star: "Except we got an Afro on her to be ethnic."
Star, a hairstylist, and her sister Stephanie moved to Chapel Hill from Durham nearly 10 years ago. They live together and are best friends "forever." I remark how wonderful it must be to have your sister as your best friend. Star adds "AND my dad has like 15 kids!"
(photographs taken on Franklin between Henderson & Columbia)
Always open. No card required.
The free micro-libraries are scattered on/off Franklin Street in the once-vacant bins. Chapel Hill Downtown Partnership initiated the shared book collections to build community and foster reading.
Books are free to all. Take a book. Drop a book. Leave a note between the pages...
(photograph taken on Franklin between S. Roberson & Kenan, near the Med Deli)
Looks like the construction-orange bikes mysteriously appearing throughout town are part of a marketing campaign by Orangetheory Fitness to generate buzz about the new fitness center opening next month in Chapel Hill. It's a similar tactic used in other cities (from Tampa to Seattle) to get folks talking and stimulate interest in the international fitness chain.
Here in Chapel Hill, the folks at Orangetheory Fitness hope people will take photos of themselves next to the painted bikes and post them on social media. The two-wheelers have been seen in odd locations including the median strip on US 15-501/Highway 54 around Brandon Road, and the corner of Highway 54 & Finley Golf Course Road.
(photograph taken on the corner of Highway 54 & Finley Golf Course Road)
Eric The door is propped and the neon "open" sign shines through the midday sun. Eric is hunched over the computer. Each week, he commutes from Cary to Chapel Hill to volunteer at Internationalist Books & Community Center. He has been volunteering here -- a place he learned about online -- for two months. "It's a radical anarchist book space more or less," he says.
Eric says typically two types of people visit: the curious, and "sometimes it's people doing stories about the place, the murder."
The Internationalist Bookstore and Community Center serves almost as a remembrance to founder and local activist Bob Sheldon who established the Internationalist in 1981 as a meeting place to provide alternate information on 1980s anti-apartheid. Over time, the store/community center has evolved from a small reading room to a non-profit center for political activism, radical reads, and a place to spawn grass roots movements. It's a place for progressive thinking and social justice, espousing those of any age, gender, sexual orientation, ethnicity and political viewpoint.
Sheldon was shot and killed while closing the store in 1991. More than 20 years later, the cause of his death remains a mystery. Some surmise it was a robbery gone awry, others believe it was politically motivated. No arrests were made. The case remains open.
Besides the Internationalist, Sheldon is memorialized in writings, film and song. The Indigo Girls referenced Sheldon in the song "Jonas and Ezekiel," and the lyrics to the Sonic Youth track "Chapel Hill" chronicle Sheldon's death.
Eric was born around the time Sheldon was killed. To him, Sheldon is the man in the red frame hanging by the store entrance. However, it's the ideals behind the store that fuel his commute.
(photograph was taken on Franklin between Kenan and Roberson)
Originally from Greensboro, he's been living in Chapel Hill for about three years. Alphonse is an artist who studied theater and has appeared in plenty of of community and regional stages: "Google me. Alphonse Nicholson. Spelled Nicholson like the actor [Jack]." In May, he closed the show in the role of Segismundo in Deep Dish Theatre's "Life is a Dream." Earlier this year, he transformed into Joseph Asagio in the Playmakers Repertory Company's rendition of "A Raisin in the Sun." He says he is "most excited" to head to New York City later this month for another performance in which he was commissioned to compose a show. "I live and die for this stuff...to be an artist. I believe in doing what I like to do."
When he is not acting, Alphonse is often out on Franklin Street playing an array of overturned buckets. But sometimes, he says, he's mistaken for the homeless. "I think they have a hard time figuring it out. Eventually people realize I'm not. They realize I'm out here to entertain and bring some life to the city. North Carolina is home...This area deserves good artists."
(photographed on the corner of Franklin/Columbia Streets)
"I fell in love with a girl and everything fell apart then," says Justin, avoiding eye contact. His eyes speak of sadness and his voice of dejection. This is his third time being homeless. He also has been on federal assistance and has lived with an aunt. Justin grew up in Hillsborough and moved to Chapel Hill in 2008. He came to Chapel Hill because of the resources. "Free buses and I can do this here (he points to his cup and cardboard sign). The cops don't give me a hard time because they know I am not out here getting a drink." He says he'd really like a job as a dishwasher.
Toughest part about being homeless? "The rain. Though this time of year the rain does not last all day or all night like it does in the fall or winter."
On an average day, Justin says he usually accumulates enough money to buy a coffee at Starbucks, which also includes a chair and air conditioning. "I try to make the best of it and not be down on myself or miserable about it."
As we wrap up our conversation he pulls out a crinkled bag of wipes and begins to clean his hands and fingernails. "A lot of people do not understand and they are afraid of you....They'll be walking by and move away."
He watches me take notes and adds solemnly: "Make sure to write that part."
(photographs taken on Franklin between Henderson & Columbia)
Alongside the wall of the bicycle store The Clean Machine, "The Girl" emits a swirl of colors dancing down the alley. Created in 2010, Chapel Hill artist Casey Robertson took about 12 hours by freehand to complete the piece. The mural is painted in an urban street style which sometimes folks misinterpret as illegal art. Robertson also painted "Arrows" (2011) located at 709 West Rosemary Street, next to Carrburritos.
(photographed at 104 West Main Street, Carrboro)
I first come across "Gracie" reading a tattered book crouched in the shade of the stores along Franklin Street. She is animated and quick in her speech. And expresses herself with the hand motions and facial gestures of a 1950s starlet posing or blowing kisses. Yet remains cautious of others. When I ask her name, she responds, "it's one who loves beauty...Grace, uh, no Gracie. I like that better."
She says she left the North for Chapel Hill about three years ago. Barely giving herself time for a breath, she streams: "I love the smell of the trees. It's great. Up north they do not have these kind of trees. Like the crape myrtles. I call them snow flowers. And the mockingbirds and the lizards. There is a beauty about the South. There's a melancholy about it. Before sunset, like the way the light shines in the trees... "
"Gracie" asks me to check my phone for the date of an upcoming dance performance at Memorial Hall. There is lightness to her that alludes to an artistic past. She says she once danced with renowned modern dance/choreographer Martha Graham and is eager to see an upcoming show. In lieu of checking my phone, I offer to cross the street to grab her a catalog at the Carolina Performing Arts offices. I don't think she believes me.
When I return, I find her digging through her purse in the alley closest to Starbucks. She looks surprised to see me. I hand her the catalog and she thanks me. "I cannot even afford to take dance lessons....but I dance on the street."
(photographed on Franklin Street between Columbia and Henderson Streets)
Server at the French/Mediterranean restaurant Provence in Carrboro. She has lived in the area for about ten years and at one time performed on local stages. "I abandoned theater for being a regular person." Alison rhapsodizes about working at the restaurant which from the street looks like a cozy home with an inviting garden bedecked with a purling fountain, stone ledge and a giant rooster. "We are like a hidden gem. It's a little oasis here."
Perhaps it's because she has perspective.
Prior to working at Provence she answered phones for the Town of Chapel Hill Public Works department (as in trash collection, pothole repair, etc. ). "I like serving here. People are real nice. At my old job, people just wanted to call in and yell at you."
(photographed at Provence restaurant on weaver Street in Carrboro)
From Guatemala and lives in Chapel Hill. He's been here seven years and works as a prep cook at Sakura Xpress on Columbia Street. "Me gusta mucho aquí. Me gusta el ambiente y el trabajo." ("I like it a lot here. I like the atmosphere and the work.")
Though he still has family in Guatemala and some here in Chapel Hill, he'd like to have his own one day. "Yo quisiera ser padre y tener familia...No quiero ser sortero." ("I'd like to be a father and have a family...I do not want to remain single.")
(photographed behind Sakura Xpress on Franklin/Main Streets in Chapel Hill)