Portraits of Resilience: Research project showcases risk and resiliency through art

 

As Andre Parnell strolled the streets of Indianapolis’ east side, camera in hand. He was searching for a moment—one that would capture the realities, risks, and resilience within his community.

“The Far Eastside is more than where we’re from—it’s where we shape who we are,” Parnell explains. “Every street tells a story; every neighbor holds a legacy. It’s on us to carry that forward.”

Parnell is doing that through art. He was one of four artists selected to be part of a unique research project, led by O’Neill Assistant Professor Courtney Page-Tan. She worked with the Indy Arts Council to select Parnell, along with Corey Ewing, Cierra Johnson, and LaNiah Ray as the artists.

“The artists’ stories are so incredibly powerful,” Page-Tan explains. “It’s one thing to hear about problems, but to see them through a collection of photographs really creates a powerful visual.”

Their goal was to identify sources of both pain and progress in four Indianapolis communities: the Far Eastside, Martindale-Brightwood, Arlington Woods, and the Near Eastside.

“Each community has a different history and faces different problems,” Page-Tan explains. “Being new to Indianapolis, it was important for me to get to know the local neighborhoods and to give individuals in those areas a platform to elevate their voice.”

The Portraits of Resilience project is a research and art collaboration, using photos and voice recordings to answer two key questions: What are your community’s sources of resilience and what are your community’s sources of risk?

She met with the artist to set the ground rules: follow the two key questions, prioritize safety, respect privacy, and avoid “false light.”

“Sometimes you can capture something really compelling, but it may not truly represent reality,” she explains. “This project was designed to capture the truth. And there were some really powerful examples that came out of it.”

The truth captured spanned the spectrum, from the lows of homelessness and poverty to the highs of shared joy, renewal, and opportunity for the future. Each collection of photos told a story through the lens and point-of-view of the photographer.

They shared their photos and voice recordings with the research team, explaining what they had photographed, answering questions about the image, and providing context for what it showed. Page-Tan and her student research assistants combed through more than 200 photos, listened to the recordings, and talked one-on-one with each artist to identify themes of risk and resilience.

“The artists’ experience in the community is something that needs to be elevated,” she says. “They live in the communities and have experienced things like food insecurity or a lack of access to nutritious food.”

She pauses to point out one photo of a food market that recently opened in the area, then explains, “Their experience of living in the community and then seeing this type of change is something that really should be celebrated.”

For resiliency, the team grouped photos into several categories including access to food, design to support accessibility, neighborhood engagement, opportunities for art, and more. One photo captured an image of a blank traffic box, which the photographer noted could be used as a space for public art.

Themes for risk emerged as well—abandoned buildings, infrastructure and mobility challenges, unfinished intentions, and more.

“There are places where we saw the potential for resiliency, but a project may have been left in limbo,” she says. “For example, a new apartment complex signals growth, but the surrounding conditions tell a different story. There are no sidewalks, no benches or shelters, and so on.”

The photographs and stories were the primary focus of a recent art exhibit that drew in more than 100 attendees, including neighbors, local leaders, and state lawmakers.

Walking into the space at 10 East Arts, people were greeted with displays specially curated by Ray-Reed.

In one exhibit, four veils of sheer organza gently flowed every time the door opened. Each veil had photos delicately screen-printed onto the material, a physical representation of how the important issues featured in the images may fade into the background of daily life, forgotten or simply accepted by so many.

In other exhibits, plywood and lumber—used both to board up and build up the community—became the backdrop for photos that showcased examples of risk and resilience in the area.

“I believe the commonality of where we focused reflects the general sense of concern or pride associated with our Hoosier experience,” says Ewing. “We clearly give meaning to spaces and our connection to them. The ones that follow don’t have to love it the same, but should love it in their own way.”

But Page-Tan stresses the artists captured so much more than points of pain within each community. They also captured points of pride.

Another exhibit featured the words “Flowers grow out east” spray painted onto the plywood to highlight the beauty often overlooked in stories circulated about the city’s east side.

That messaging of problems vs. solutions is one Page-Tan aimed to tackle in the project.

“The artists had really clear ideas of what their community could be like with strategic and thoughtful investment,” Page-Tan says. “These are four individuals who care a lot about their community. They’ve grown up on the east side and have seen attempts at revitalization in the past, so they have really clear ideas of what could make their community stronger and more resilient.”

At the event, Page-Tan led a discussion about the images collected and what leaders and locals alike could do about them.

“We hope these visuals will stick with leaders as they consider policy options to address these issues while also showcasing the resiliency of these communities,” she says.

As for the future, Page-Tan says she’s applying for a new grant that would help take the project into a new phase to track the progress of these communities and potentially others as well.

“As a researcher, it’s such a gift to see the artists’ creativity and to be able to give them a platform to have their voices heard,” she reflects. “Hopefully, telling this story visually will be a new and different way of communicating these core needs and help to bring about change in the future.”