Quarantine Portraits (An Isolated Collaboration of Friends and Objects)

During the strange quarantined spring of 2020 I asked my subjects, all friends and work colleagues, to select an object that had gained significance to them during their quarantine, and one that they would be interested in presenting to me and my camera. I committed to photographing from an appropriate social distance, and only within the ‘public’ exterior spaces where they live - their front yards, front steps, driveways, sidewalks, etc - acceptable locations I might be able to visually access as a visitor. I connected in person, something rare for most civilians during this time of Covid. This engagement was nice, and others clearly appreciated a visitor and an hour or two of human interaction. Only upon arrival would I learn of their selected objects, thus our conversation was at first a back and forth of inquiries, discoveries, and details. After our photo sessions, I would reflect on what I had learned from my friends, prompt them with further questions, and ask them to write to me about the what and why of their selected objects. In addition, I asked them to photograph their objects in their natural environment, typically inside their homes. By doing so, we are given detailed access to their personal connections to these things, and we visually penetrate their quarantine, their photos inviting us into their bubble. Book here: https://www.blurb.com/b/10481101-quarantine-portraits Online version here: https://www.kirkhostetter.com/quarantine-portraits