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| P H O T O E X H I B I T I O N |
| P H O T O E S S A Y |
Las Vegas Faces of the Street will take you on a journey down the streets
and alleyways of Las Vegas like you've never experienced before. You will receive an
up-close and personal look into the lives of 50 people living on the streets. This compilation
is definitely a stark contrast to the glitter-and-glam' image you are accustomed to seeing.
The individuals you will meet vary from the chronic homeless to those affected by the
United States' struggling economy. It is likely your heart will be touched as this powerful
and poignant photo essay brings to light the humanity that is often forgotten in regard to
those who are dealing with personal challenges of survival.
All net proceeds benefit www.theshadetree.org
and alleyways of Las Vegas like you've never experienced before. You will receive an
up-close and personal look into the lives of 50 people living on the streets. This compilation
is definitely a stark contrast to the glitter-and-glam' image you are accustomed to seeing.
The individuals you will meet vary from the chronic homeless to those affected by the
United States' struggling economy. It is likely your heart will be touched as this powerful
and poignant photo essay brings to light the humanity that is often forgotten in regard to
those who are dealing with personal challenges of survival.
All net proceeds benefit www.theshadetree.org
| BOOK ON SALE NOW !! Preview it and buy a copy for yourself and support the homeless. |
| Upcoming Exhibitions The Art Institute of Las Vegas - Winter 2010 |
R E V I E W S . . .
** Beautiful! The photography shows heart, and reflects sides of not only Las Vegas but many places in
cities across the nation. God Bless each and every one, and thanks to the photographer who took on this
subject. -- S Bayliss
** What an impact! What a journey! I,too, have to say God bless those who have been thrown into this
life landscape. The story in pictures reflects the genuine truth. Photojournalists of this caliber are to be
commended! Go girl go... -- Cheer
** A picture is worth a thousand words. And when it's a photograph showing a situation as urgent as
homelessness is, a lot rides on the message the page carries. You've done a great job of making it hard to
ignore the people you depict. They speak to me through your camera. -- L Nectari
** Mona, you captured the humanity of the homeless. Well done. -- TracyMS
** All I can say is WOW! It's hard to ignore the homeless when they have a face. You gave them a face,
and you did it well. Your book touched my heart. -- VH Foster
** It's an important story that deserves to be told, which is difficult to ignore after seeing their faces and
reading their stories - they're very powerful. In many cases, you captured such joy in stark contrast to
their circumstances. That's a gift. Thank you for giving them a voice. -- Dinca
** Amazing book, Mona. Despite being homeless, a lot of these people seem to have a positive attitude.
Your photography is amazing, but your stories take everything to the next level. It's all so well done.
-- MaryAnnWE
** What amazing images. It truly put things into perspective for me. -- Natwrite
** Mona, what a wonderful, moving work of heART. -- Gabryshak
** You were very courageous to shoot these photos and show the world how wonderful these people are
and the stories that explain their situations. The photos are very powerful and moved me to tears. What
can I say,... Brilliant! -- DogTrainer
** This is a beautiful, thought-provoking book. I have just purchased this book,and it is beautiful. Buy
this book!! Proceeds go to a good cause. The author is extremely talented. -- T. Carnine
** Beautiful! The photography shows heart, and reflects sides of not only Las Vegas but many places in
cities across the nation. God Bless each and every one, and thanks to the photographer who took on this
subject. -- S Bayliss
** What an impact! What a journey! I,too, have to say God bless those who have been thrown into this
life landscape. The story in pictures reflects the genuine truth. Photojournalists of this caliber are to be
commended! Go girl go... -- Cheer
** A picture is worth a thousand words. And when it's a photograph showing a situation as urgent as
homelessness is, a lot rides on the message the page carries. You've done a great job of making it hard to
ignore the people you depict. They speak to me through your camera. -- L Nectari
** Mona, you captured the humanity of the homeless. Well done. -- TracyMS
** All I can say is WOW! It's hard to ignore the homeless when they have a face. You gave them a face,
and you did it well. Your book touched my heart. -- VH Foster
** It's an important story that deserves to be told, which is difficult to ignore after seeing their faces and
reading their stories - they're very powerful. In many cases, you captured such joy in stark contrast to
their circumstances. That's a gift. Thank you for giving them a voice. -- Dinca
** Amazing book, Mona. Despite being homeless, a lot of these people seem to have a positive attitude.
Your photography is amazing, but your stories take everything to the next level. It's all so well done.
-- MaryAnnWE
** What amazing images. It truly put things into perspective for me. -- Natwrite
** Mona, what a wonderful, moving work of heART. -- Gabryshak
** You were very courageous to shoot these photos and show the world how wonderful these people are
and the stories that explain their situations. The photos are very powerful and moved me to tears. What
can I say,... Brilliant! -- DogTrainer
** This is a beautiful, thought-provoking book. I have just purchased this book,and it is beautiful. Buy
this book!! Proceeds go to a good cause. The author is extremely talented. -- T. Carnine
A local photographer hopes to change lives one picture at a time. Through her lens,
she captured the lives of 50 homeless men, women and children living in alleyways
and behind buildings in Las Vegas. Now the artist is using their personal stories and
pictures to help other homeless people trying to survive on the streets.
Gail Matthews volunteers in the kitchen at the Shade Tree Homeless Shelter. It's the
first time she's ever been homeless. But with help from Shade Tree, the 57-year-old
woman is looking for work and going back to school. “It was like, ‘Oh my God! I can't
believe I'm here,” she said. “I had a place where I can come and get my head back
together because I was lost. I had no place to go.”
It's stories like Gail's that inspire local photographer Mona Shield Payne. She set out
to document people affected by the recession. With every face and every picture,
she tells the story of pain, survival, and hope.
One of those from a 14-year-old boy named Cameron. “He was a football player at
one of the local high schools and he had to wake up at 4:30 in the morning to catch
the bus and go all the way over to Henderson so that he could play high school ball.
His grades were awesome. He was going to the summer education program. I have
two sons and maybe if they were in his circumstances they'd do they same thing, but
I don't know. He was amazing,” she said.
One day, Payne came to Shade Tree to photograph homeless women and children.
That's when she witnessed people who once lived on the streets of Las Vegas
getting back on their feet. Payne created a book and is donating all the proceeds to
the shelter. “What a blessing. It kind of felt like she read my mind and fulfilled that
dream to see what we are accomplishing here caught forever in black and white
inside the book,” said Shade Tree Director Marlene Richter.
Richter says the pictures capture the realities of homelessness that most people
don't see, or just choose to ignore. In the last three months, the homeless shelter
says it's served more people than ever before and 70-percent of the people are
homeless for the first time.
The shelter held a fundraiser art show Thursday at 6:30 p.m. at the Wellington Place.
Tickets were $50. The book was sold at the event and all net proceeds benefited
The Shade Tree.
News content © Copyright 2000 - 2009 WorldNow and KLAS. All Rights Reserved.
she captured the lives of 50 homeless men, women and children living in alleyways
and behind buildings in Las Vegas. Now the artist is using their personal stories and
pictures to help other homeless people trying to survive on the streets.
Gail Matthews volunteers in the kitchen at the Shade Tree Homeless Shelter. It's the
first time she's ever been homeless. But with help from Shade Tree, the 57-year-old
woman is looking for work and going back to school. “It was like, ‘Oh my God! I can't
believe I'm here,” she said. “I had a place where I can come and get my head back
together because I was lost. I had no place to go.”
It's stories like Gail's that inspire local photographer Mona Shield Payne. She set out
to document people affected by the recession. With every face and every picture,
she tells the story of pain, survival, and hope.
One of those from a 14-year-old boy named Cameron. “He was a football player at
one of the local high schools and he had to wake up at 4:30 in the morning to catch
the bus and go all the way over to Henderson so that he could play high school ball.
His grades were awesome. He was going to the summer education program. I have
two sons and maybe if they were in his circumstances they'd do they same thing, but
I don't know. He was amazing,” she said.
One day, Payne came to Shade Tree to photograph homeless women and children.
That's when she witnessed people who once lived on the streets of Las Vegas
getting back on their feet. Payne created a book and is donating all the proceeds to
the shelter. “What a blessing. It kind of felt like she read my mind and fulfilled that
dream to see what we are accomplishing here caught forever in black and white
inside the book,” said Shade Tree Director Marlene Richter.
Richter says the pictures capture the realities of homelessness that most people
don't see, or just choose to ignore. In the last three months, the homeless shelter
says it's served more people than ever before and 70-percent of the people are
homeless for the first time.
The shelter held a fundraiser art show Thursday at 6:30 p.m. at the Wellington Place.
Tickets were $50. The book was sold at the event and all net proceeds benefited
The Shade Tree.
News content © Copyright 2000 - 2009 WorldNow and KLAS. All Rights Reserved.
Las Vegas Photojournalist Captures the
Struggles of Homelessness
Struggles of Homelessness
| KLAS-TV Coverage |
| It's Show Time |
| Behind The Scenes |
By Alex Avala
Thursday, Nov. 12, 2009 | 2:47 p.m.
Thursday, Nov. 12, 2009 | 2:47 p.m.