Ep #109 : Neighbors, Strangers, and the Stories Between Us with Ann Rosen

Summary:

It's our season finale, y'all! 🎉 We made it to the end of Season 7 of noseyAF — AND we crossed 100 episodes! I still can't believe it. None of this happens without you, so thank you for being nosey right along with me all season long. I am so grateful. In this episode, I sit down with Ann Rosen, a Brooklyn-based portrait photographer and activist whose decades-long practice sits at the intersection of art, social justice, and human dignity. We talk about her evolution from abstract portraiture to her current project On Being Seen — an ongoing photography and writing workshop series with women in New York City shelters and transitional housing programs. Anne opens up about her own personal struggles, including surviving addiction and emotional trauma, and how those experiences shaped her deep empathy for the women she photographs. If you've ever wondered how art can truly serve a community — and what it means to really see someone — this one's for you.

Topics discussed:

Ann's artistic journey from abstract photography to intimate portrait work, including her In the Presence of Family series documenting diverse NYC families at street fairs
The On Being Seen project — photographing and collecting the stories of women in NYC shelters, and how the diptych format combines portraits with the subjects' own handwriting
Ann's personal history with addiction and trauma, and how it informs her empathy-driven approach to social justice photography
The ethics and logistics of photographing vulnerable populations — model releases, privacy, and consent
What photography can do that other forms of activism can't, and advice for photographers wanting to do community-centered work

Chapters:

• 00:24 - End of an Era: Season Finale

• 01:26 - The Journey of Ann Rosen: From Painting to Photography

• 15:40 - Empathy Through Photography: A New Perspective

• 28:33 - Understanding Homelessness and Resilience

• 37:51 - The Journey of Recovery and Art

• 45:50 - The Importance of Community and Neighborly Relations

All About Ann: Ann Rosen (b. Brooklyn) is a New Jersey-based artist known for her social justice projects using portrait photography as a tool for empowerment and empathy. In Rosen’s current project, Being Seen, she teaches art and photography workshops with women from marginalized communities such as shelters, formerly homeless Veterans, recovering addicts, formerly incarcerated.

Rosen graduated from SUNY at Buffalo (BFA) and the Visual Studies Workshop (MFA), studying with Nathan Lyons, Joan Lyons and John Wood. Her influences are stark B&W and color portraits by Irving Penn, Paul Strand, and Catherine Opie.

Resources mentioned in this episode:

Housing Plus — organization supporting women experiencing homelessness and those transitioning out of incarceration
Five Myles Gallery, Brooklyn
CEPA Gallery, Buffalo, NY — upcoming solo show in November
Brooklyn Arts Council — grant funding source for Ann's work
Visual Studies Workshop, Rochester, NY — Ann's graduate school

Noteworthy quotes from this episode:

"I think that everybody has the right to be seen and everyone has the right to be respected."

"Photography is a universal language. You don't need to know English or any other language."

"I realized I was giving to others what I had experienced the joy of gaining after a traumatic lifestyle."

"Nobody wants to be sitting on the street. But the gestalt of seeing a person who is homeless — they're going to harm me? No, they're not going to harm me."

Connect with Ann

Instagram: @annrosenphotography

Website: annrosen.com

Connect with Stephanie

Instagram: @stephaniegraham

Email: stephanie@missgraham.com

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